Relief Officials Urge U.S. to Free Frozen Iraq Assets

International relief and nutrition officials warned members of Congress on Thursday that Iraq’s civilian population is on the brink of famine and urged the Bush Administration to release frozen Iraqi assets so that Baghdad can use them to import food.

The experts said Iraq’s public health crisis is becoming critical. They cited food shortages and infrastructure damage that has left parts of Baghdad “ankle-deep in human waste,” according to Richard Reid, public affairs director for the U.N. Children’s Fund.

Tufts University nutritionist John Osgood Field, who toured the war-ravaged country for 10 days last month, said his examination of nearly 700 children under age 6 found 40% to 50% were severely stunted in their growth rate.

Field told members of the House Select Committee on Hunger that the children’s condition apparently reflects the cumulative effects of privation that began during Iraq’s decade-long war with Iran. But he said the embargo authorized by the United Nations last year “will have a severe effect” on their future health and development.