US REFUGEE ADMISSIONS PROGRAM REFERRAL FOR LOCALLY

UNCLAS E F T O SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 000937 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR: PRM/A; DHS FOR BICS HEADQUARTER; CAIRO FOR REFCOORD; AMMAN FOR REFCOORD AND CONSULAR E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/16/2017 TAGS: IZ PHUM PREF SUBJECT: US REFUGEE ADMISSIONS PROGRAM REFERRAL FOR LOCALLY EMPLOYED STAFF EVEREST AL-BARAZANCHI KAREEM MOHAMMAD AMIN REF: STATE 16383 ¶1. Embassy Baghdad would like to refer the following locally employed staff to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) ¶2. (SBU) Principal applicant (PA): Name: Everest Albarazanchi (A.k.A. Everest Kareem Mohammad Amin) DOB: November 27, 1974 (Iraqi Passport states in error November 17) POB: Basra Gender: Female Marital Status: Single Household Members Name: Afrodite Kareem Mohammad Amin DOB: July 24, 1966 POB: Baghdad Gender: Female Marital Status: Single Relationship: Sister Name: Tara Kareem Mohammad Amin DOB: Aug 12 1972 POB: Baghdad Gender: Female Marital Status: Single Relationship: Sister Name: Schwan Kareen Mohammad Amin DOB: July 27, 1968 POB: Baghdad Gender: Male Marital Status: Married (Separated) Relationship: Brother Name: Kareem Mohammad Amin Ahmed DOB: July 1, 1933 POB: Sulaymaniyah Gender: Male Marital Status: Married Relationship: Father Name: Nasreen Zainal-Deen Najim al Deen Al-Naqshabandi DOB: July 1, 1936 POB Sulaymaniyah Gender: Female Marital Status: Married Relationship: Mother Name: Thuraya Ahmed Abdullah Abdul Rahman DOB: July 1, 1952 POB: Sulaymaniyah Gender: Female Marital Status: Married Relationship: Cousin, caregiver ¶3. (SBU) Description of persecution claim, as reported by Everest and her American Supervisor: Everest has worked as a visa assistant in the Consular Section since June 2005, where she has met Iraqi officials and members of the Iraqi public everyday. Prior to that she worked for Kellog Brown and Root inside the IZ from 2003. Although she has never lived in Kurdistan she is a Sunni Kurd living in a mixed neighborhood in Baghdad. Her household includes her father, mother, two sisters (who both work in the IZ),and a 48 year old woman she refers to as her cousin. Her 38 year old brother works for the Iraq Minitry of Defense. Her mother, older middle sister and brother all went to Jordan in late 2006 after a neighbor recognized the brother as working at the Ministry of Defense and two of the brothers coworkers were shot and killed. After Everest's coworker was injured in a car-bombing, she temporarily moved in with her uncle in the IZ but cannot stay there permanently. She, her father, sister and cousin will all depart permanently for Jordan on March 19 where they will meet with the UNHCR on March 22. The entire family depends on the income that the daughters receive. In Jordan, they will depend on the income of the middle daughter who is working for her Iraqi company by email. ¶4. (SBU) Everest has been one of the best employees of the Consular Section. She now fears for her own life and her family's life is anyone learns that she works for the U.S. BAGHDAD 00000937 002 OF 002 Embassy. After Iraqis have seen her face at the Consular window for the past two years, she has to hide from the public in Baghdad for fear that someone will recognize her. Her fears were compounded when a neighbor recognized her brother from the Minstry of Defense and her sister as working at the MNF's Project Contracting Office. She has brought everything she has related to her job into the office, for fear that someone might search their house and discover the connection. She is not sure what the price is now, but in recent months the JAM in her neighborhood was offering USD 5,000 to anyone who would tell them the identity of any U.S. Embassy worker. ¶5. (SBU) She has never lived in Kurdistan but many of her family members were killed there by poison gas under Saddam. They do still have relatives there but Everest believes that there is still a strong danger of war and insurgency in Kurdistan. She is afraid that Kurdistan will try to break off from the rest of Iraq. She said that she has known war all her life and doesn't want to go anywhere, including Syria, where she will have to live in war again. ¶6. (SBU) Everest's case was brought before the Embassy Refugee Committee on March 15 an the committee found her case to be credible and to warrant referral to the USRAP. Class namechecks have been conducted on Everest and her household members. The female members of the family has no close hits. The two males have common names (Mohammad Ahmed and Karim Mohammad) and will have to be cleared in Washington. ¶7. (SBU) Applicant should not be requiring financial support while the case is being processed. SPECKHARD