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Arab News, 24 April 2016

Saudi Arabia is keen on building good relationship with Iraq and develop an understanding to create common grounds, especially in countering terrorism, says Saudi Ambassador to Iraq Thamer Al-Sabhan.

Al-Sabhan, who made the statement in an interview with Al Arabiya TV channel, said Saudi Arabia is ready to participate in fighting Daesh, a terrorist organization, in Iraq if the Iraqi government sought the Kingdom’s help.

“Saudi Arabia is fighting Daesh and all terrorist organizations in Syria and Yemen. If we are asked by the Iraqi government to fight Daesh in that country, we will be fully prepared for that,” he added.

“Saudi Arabia is fighting extremism in all its forms and we know that Iraq suffers from the atrocities of Daesh and other terrorist organizations,” Al-Sabhan added.

Al-Sabhan stressed that the Saudi side is still committed to provide financial aid to Iraq. In fact, Saudi Arabia had provided a fresh consignment of humanitarian aid to provinces of Anbar, Fallujah and Hit, in coordination with the Iraqi government.

Saudi Arabia took care of 1,000 Iraqi orphans in Kurdistan who lost their parents due to Daesh attacks. The step was taken following a directive by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman.

The Kingdom had also sent urgent aid to those affected by the conflict in the Anbar province. Saudi Arabia had pledged $500 million in humanitarian aid for Iraq to be disbursed through the United Nations to those in need regardless of sects or ethnicity.

The UN revealed that hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have been displaced by militant offensives in that country. The Kingdom is following up on the distribution of aid to ensure it reaches deserving individuals.

An estimated 1.2 million Iraqis have been displaced by fighting, including from the Anbar and Nineveh governorates, according to the UN Refugee Agency.

The International Organization for Migration has called for the creation of humanitarian corridors, warning that tens of thousands of Iraqis displaced by violence are beyond the reach of aid agencies.