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Hundreds of Iraqis Sickened by Food Poisoning at Camp Near Mosul Hundreds of Iraqis Sickened by Food Poisoning at Camp Near Mosul
(about 4 hours later)
ERBIL, Iraq — Day after day, the miseries of life pile up in camps for civilians driven from their homes by fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants in Mosul. The searing heat has been made worse by a lack of electricity to power air-conditioners. Hearts ache for missing loved ones. Uncertainty about when, or if, they can ever go home lingers.ERBIL, Iraq — Day after day, the miseries of life pile up in camps for civilians driven from their homes by fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants in Mosul. The searing heat has been made worse by a lack of electricity to power air-conditioners. Hearts ache for missing loved ones. Uncertainty about when, or if, they can ever go home lingers.
Food, though, usually isn’t the problem, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, when the pious reach deep into their pockets to help the needy. Food, though, usually is not the problem, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, when the pious reach deep into their pockets to help the needy.
On Monday at sundown, hundreds of residents of one of the many tent camps that have sprawled across the barren landscape around Mosul gathered for iftar, the evening meal to break the day’s Ramadan fast. They were treated to a meal of chicken, rice, soup, beans and yogurt — paid for by a Qatari charity and prepared by a restaurant in Erbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region.On Monday at sundown, hundreds of residents of one of the many tent camps that have sprawled across the barren landscape around Mosul gathered for iftar, the evening meal to break the day’s Ramadan fast. They were treated to a meal of chicken, rice, soup, beans and yogurt — paid for by a Qatari charity and prepared by a restaurant in Erbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region.
Within hours, hundreds fell sick, vomiting and suffering from diarrhea. Overnight, until about 4 a.m., ambulances and cars rushed victims to local hospitals, said Alaa Muhsin, an ambulance driver from Baghdad who works at the camp. Within hours, hundreds fell sick, vomiting and suffering from diarrhea. Overnight, until about 4 a.m., ambulances and cars rushed victims to hospitals, said Alaa Muhsin, an ambulance driver from Baghdad who works at the camp.
Because this unfolded in the Middle East, where events are rarely taken at face value, it didn’t take long for the episode to become bound up in geopolitics. When it was made known that a charity from Qatar, called RAF, paid for the meals, state television in Saudi Arabia, which is in the midst of a diplomatic dispute with Qatar, jumped on it. On Twitter, Saudi Arabia’s state-run Alekhbariya television station showed photographs of sick-looking children languishing on the floor of what appeared to be an overcrowded clinic. Because this unfolded in the Middle East, where events are rarely taken at face value, it did not take long for the episode to become bound up in geopolitics. When it was made known that a charity from Qatar, called RAF, paid for the meals, state television in Saudi Arabia, which is in the midst of a diplomatic dispute with Qatar, jumped on it. On Twitter, Saudi Arabia’s state-run Alekhbariya television station showed photographs of sick-looking children languishing on the floor of what appeared to be an overcrowded clinic.
“The authorities in Doha poison displaced people,” read an Arabic hashtag in one tweet, saying the “RAF Qatari terrorist association” had provided the meals. Another tweet sought to implicate another of Saudi Arabia’s foes in the episode, saying there were reports of “spoiled Iranian milk.” “The authorities in Doha poison displaced people,” an Arabic hashtag in one tweet read, saying the “RAF Qatari terrorist association” had provided the meals. Another tweet sought to implicate another of Saudi Arabia’s foes in the episode, saying there were reports of “spoiled Iranian milk.”
RAF was among a number of Qatari organizations, as well as some individuals, that Saudi Arabia and a few other Arab countries designated as linked to terrorism last week as tensions rose between the large Arabian kingdom and its tiny gulf neighbor.RAF was among a number of Qatari organizations, as well as some individuals, that Saudi Arabia and a few other Arab countries designated as linked to terrorism last week as tensions rose between the large Arabian kingdom and its tiny gulf neighbor.
Another conspiracy theory that made the rounds claimed that the Islamic State, which is fighting to maintain control of its last neighborhoods in Mosul, sabotaged the food as a way for some of its fighters, who had posed as displaced civilians, to escape the camps.Another conspiracy theory that made the rounds claimed that the Islamic State, which is fighting to maintain control of its last neighborhoods in Mosul, sabotaged the food as a way for some of its fighters, who had posed as displaced civilians, to escape the camps.
But the episode was really just a nasty case of food poisoning, an act of intended generosity that went badly awry.But the episode was really just a nasty case of food poisoning, an act of intended generosity that went badly awry.
Breaking protocol at the United Nations-run camp, which calls for any hot meals to be produced inside the camp, and only dry food to be brought in, officials allowed food prepared outside to enter, from, in this case, a restaurant more than an hour’s drive away. The meals, one official said, had been prepared in the afternoon and then driven to the camp, where they sat inside cars in the 100-degree heat for nearly two hours before they were served.Breaking protocol at the United Nations-run camp, which calls for any hot meals to be produced inside the camp, and only dry food to be brought in, officials allowed food prepared outside to enter, from, in this case, a restaurant more than an hour’s drive away. The meals, one official said, had been prepared in the afternoon and then driven to the camp, where they sat inside cars in the 100-degree heat for nearly two hours before they were served.
“The meals were prepared in the afternoon,” said Rzgar Obed, a manager at the camp, called Hassan Sham, in an interview Tuesday afternoon. “The weather was very hot. That was the reason.” Mr. Obed said RAF had paid for the meals, which were prepared by a restaurant in Erbil called Dunya. Local news reports said that the police were investigating, and that managers of the restaurant had been detained. On Tuesday afternoon, Dunya was padlocked and empty, even though a sign said that during Ramadan it opened at 4 p.m. and stayed open all night. “The meals were prepared in the afternoon,” Rzgar Obed, a manager at the camp, called Hassan Sham, said in an interview Tuesday afternoon. “The weather was very hot. That was the reason.” Mr. Obed said RAF had paid for the meals, which were prepared by a restaurant in Erbil called Dunya. Local news reports said that the police were investigating, and that managers of the restaurant had been detained. On Tuesday afternoon, Dunya was padlocked and empty, even though a sign said that during Ramadan it opened at 4 p.m. and stayed open all night.
Earlier on Tuesday, news reports circulated, claiming that two people, including a child, had died from the food poisoning. But later in the day, officials said that wasn’t true, and that no one had died. Earlier on Tuesday, news reports circulated, claiming that two people, including a child, had died from the food poisoning. But later in the day, officials said that was not true, and that no one had died.
“To be honest, we checked all the tents and couldn’t find that anyone died,” Mr. Obed said.“To be honest, we checked all the tents and couldn’t find that anyone died,” Mr. Obed said.
But plenty were sick, and by the end of the day, a few dozen people remained in hospitals, according to Mr. Obed.But plenty were sick, and by the end of the day, a few dozen people remained in hospitals, according to Mr. Obed.
The battle for Mosul, the largest city in either Iraq or Syria to have fallen under control of the Islamic State, began in October. Much of the city has been liberated, including the districts to the east of the Tigris River, which have reclaimed a measure of normalcy. Iraqi forces are now converging on the narrow streets of the old city in west Mosul, where more than 100,000 civilians are stuck. Already, more than 600,000 people have been displaced from west Mosul, where buildings have been flattened by airstrikes and artillery, with much fighting still ahead.The battle for Mosul, the largest city in either Iraq or Syria to have fallen under control of the Islamic State, began in October. Much of the city has been liberated, including the districts to the east of the Tigris River, which have reclaimed a measure of normalcy. Iraqi forces are now converging on the narrow streets of the old city in west Mosul, where more than 100,000 civilians are stuck. Already, more than 600,000 people have been displaced from west Mosul, where buildings have been flattened by airstrikes and artillery, with much fighting still ahead.