In a report published on May 17, U.S. humanitarian aid organization Direct Relief said that public support for the internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in the Kurdistan Region has dwindled or even been formally terminated, and those living in the camps are now being told to return home to areas that remain hostile and unsafe.

The report also said that the Kurdistan Region is home to over 1 million refugees and IDPs, following a genocidal ISIS campaign targeting the Yezidi ethnic group from 2014 to 2017.

The federal government of Iraq aims to close the IDP camps in the Kurdistan Region by July 2024, while Kurdistan Regional Government officials have emphasized that they will not forcibly return IDPs to their areas of origin.

“Over the past 18 months, the region has seen a near-total withdrawal of foreign assistance. The result has been the suspension or deterioration of public services, economic and political volatility, and impending camp closures, compounding a humanitarian crisis for some of the most acutely marginalized groups in the region,” the Direct Relief report said.

Direct Relief also said that medication shortages are a challenge in the region, and the organization has continued to serve as a medical supply stopgap through its support of the regional public health authority, the Duhok Directorate of Health.

In total, Direct Relief said it had provided 27 tons of medical aid worth over $86 million, including emergency prep and response products, medications for pediatric patients, cancer medication, and insulin.

Read More: Most IDPs in Kurdish Camps Do Not Plan to Return: Report

A recent report funded by the European Commission published on May 14 shows that the majority of IDPs in camps in the Kurdistan Region – up to 95% – do not intend to return to their areas of origin in the next 12 months.

Read More: HRW Warns Against Kurdistan Camp Closures

Moreover, Human Rights Watch on May 13 criticized the planned closure of IDP camps in the Kurdistan Region and underlined that such a move would imperil the rights of many Yezidi IDP camp residents originally from Sinjar.