“A first-rate look at one of the lesser-recognized problems associated with the war in Iraq….
The individual stories are heart-wrenching.”
–Los Angeles Daily News

“Beautifully filmed…. It’s so good to have Aaron Brown back again.”
–PopMatters

Read the latest news and updates on Iraqi refugees.

WIDE ANGLE reports from the frontlines of the staggering refugee crisis that is unfolding in the Middle East as Iraqis flee their war-torn country at the rate of up to 50,000 people per month. Since the war began in 2003, more than four million Iraqi civilians have fled their homes -– half of them becoming exiles in neighboring countries and the rest dislocated within Iraq’s borders.

While headlines are dominated by the deadly sectarian violence engulfing Iraq, the refugee crisis — the biggest in the Middle East since the displacement of the Palestinians in 1948 — is all but ignored.

Our story takes us to the heart of the crisis -– to Syria and Jordan, which harbor the vast majority of uprooted Iraqis. WIDE ANGLE explores the displaced Iraqi community – from the middle class suburbs of Damascus where Iraqis have sent housing prices soaring more than 50 percent to the cafés, schools and food distribution sites of Amman.

We follow refugees as they cope with their new surroundings amid government pressure and rising resentment from the local population whose health, education, and housing resources are being stretched to the limit.

And, WIDE ANGLE’s anchor, Aaron Brown, speaks in Jordan with Queen Noor, the American-born widow of the late King Hussein, about the impact of the refugees’ influx on Jordan and her outlook on long-term solutions to the crisis.