June 6, 2008: After three days of visiting Iraqi refugee organizations and meeting Iraqi refugee families, I have a day to write and prepare for the shoot that begins tomorrow. The stories of suffering in Iraq and subsequent frustration in Syria pile up, and I feel I need a short break.

I visited the Syrian National museum where there is a photo exhibition showcasing the work of Iraqi children, sponsored by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and UNICEF. And, once again, I see these young faces, open and smiling, but there is always something very sad and questioning in the way they look at you.

I enter the main exhibition and turn toward the Roman period. The center of the hall is occupied by a tomb-like monument of a patriarch. Sculpted in pink marble, he doesn’t look too old and has a proud face. He looks down at us from his high pedestal. The monument is not dated. I turn to an old Arab man — I don’t know if he is a visitor or an employee here — to ask him if he knows whose tomb this is this and from which period.

The man doesn’t understand my question. He just smiles and looks at the sculpture and turns back to me – “American … Iraq, no?”

I tried to make a photo but it’s forbidden in the museum.

Tania Rahkmanova has made dozens of documentary films on historical and political themes. Iraqi Exodusis her second WIDE ANGLE film — the first was the award-winning Greetings from Grozny. She holds a Ph.D. in applied statistics and has worked as a print and documentary journalist.

There are also three agencies in Portland working to address the non-employment needs of refugees, such as housing and health care.

Sponsors Organized to Assist Refugees (SOAR)
Catholic Charities
Lutheran Community Services

UNHCR: Iraq
Articles and statistics about the Iraqi refugee crisis from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

Five Years Later, A Hidden Crisis
Report on the International Rescue Committee’s visit to Syria and Jordan in February 2008. Includes descriptions of living conditions, personal stories, graphs, charts and policy recommendations.

Refugees International: Iraq
News and policy recommendations from the non-profit organization Refugees International.

Bearing Witness: Five Years of the Iraq War
Multimedia history of the war in Iraq, including maps, photos and videos from Reuters reporters.

A Long Road for Iraq’s Refugees
Recent article on U.S. and Iraqi government policy related to the refugee crisis, from the Council on Foreign Relations.

Living Beyond Borders: Blogging the Iraqi Displacement Crisis
Blog about the Iraqi refugee crisis from the American Friends Service Committee’s Wage Peace Campaign.

Timeline: U.S. Government Response to Iraqi Refugee Crisis
Milestones in the U.S. and international response to the Iraqi refugee crisis from the non-profit Human Rights First.

The List Project
U.S. non-profit founded in 2007 to help resettle Iraqis who are imperiled due to their affiliation with the U.S. Website includes statistics, a timeline and FAQs about the Iraqi refugee crisis.

Iraq Action Days
Coalition of over 20 humanitarian organizations working for peace in Iraq.

June 12, 2008: Yesterday I met an Iraqi journalist named Fadhle. He is currently a refugee living in France but was visiting Syria. Fadhle was a very famous journalist in one of the main Iraqi newspapers. I won’t be using him for Iraqi Exodus, but I’d like to share his story here.

He was threatened by Mehdi army and several members of his family were killed. While he received political asylum in France, his family did not. The family has not seen each other in three years.

Fadhle’s wife and son remained in Baghdad because they couldn’t afford to leave — even to go to Syria. Fadhle had just enough money to fly to Damascus and bring his family from Baghdad. Here, they have enough money to live together for a month.

At the end of June, he will return to France and his family will go back to Baghdad, where they live in one of the most dangerous parts of the city. We met in one of Damascus’ new chic cafes. He came with his son.

“Sorry, to bring my boy,” Fadhle said. “When I told him on the phone that we’ll meet in Syria, he didn’t believe me. He though we would never see each other again. And now he all he want is to be with me, all the time.”

“No problem,” I said and smiled at the boy.

“Do you have brothers and sisters?” I asked.

The boy looked at me and there was something so sad in his big green eyes.

“Well, yes, I had another son and a daughter,” the father said as he took the son’s hand. “They were killed by militia at our home in front of my wife and my son.”

God, I tried to change the subject and told the boy that I also lived in France and he looked at me straight in the eyes.

“Will we go to France with papa?”

What could I say?

“Yes, you will go to France, I hope you will, but not now, maybe in three months, maybe in six or in a year.”

…But not this time, this time you have to go back to Iraq.

Tania Rahkmanova has made dozens of documentary films on historical and political themes. Iraqi Exodus is her second WIDE ANGLE film — the first was the award-winning Greetings from Grozny. She holds a Ph.D. in applied statistics and has worked as a print and documentary journalist.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that more than 4.7 million Iraqis have left their homes, including 2.7 million displaced internally and 2 million exiled in neighboring countries, primarily in Syria and Jordan. While many Iraqis were displaced prior to the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, the largest number has fled in the last five years.

Advocacy groups and lawmakers have criticized the U.S. government for doing little to admit Iraqi refugees in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion. In response, the government opened its first permanent office in Baghdad for Iraqi refugees seeking to settle in the U.S.

Previously, Iraqis had to travel to resettlement offices in Syria, Jordan and Egypt, but the Baghdad refugee processing office, located in the Green Zone, will give Iraqis greater access to file for resettlement in the U.S.

On Tuesday, President Bush also signed a law that would admit 5,000 Iraqis each year for the next five years.

This summer, WIDE ANGLE takes us to Jordan and Syria and into the daily lives of Iraqis caught in the refugee crisis–the biggest in the Middle East since the displacement of Palestinians in 1948.

WIDE ANGLE’s film about the Iraqi refugee crisis in Syria and Jordan premieres on August 19. Check your local listings for airtimes, and check back here for updates.