The Rebuilding Effort In A Dangerous Place.

Since the CPA's disbandment on June 28, when it handed power to an interim government, the Iraq Project and Contracting Office (PCO) has been in charge of implementing nearly $12.4 bn of the $18.44 bn in the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund approved by Congress.

PCO reports to the Pentagon on matters relating to programme management and contracting, and to the Iraq Reconstruction Management Office (IRMO) at the US State Department on matters relating to priorities and requirements. John Procter, spokesman for the PCO, says the IRMO takes "proper security steps to ensure both our personnel and project sites are well protected". He adds: "Our contractors have stuck their necks out and are operating in a very challenging environment. They have stepped up to the plate and have done a great job". PCO works with partners in Iraq, of which the largest is the US Army Corps of Engineers (USAce), which oversees the electrical and oil sectors.

The involvement of troops in these projects, however, makes them and other humanitarian groups targets for terrorists. But Lt-Col. Joseph Yoswa, US army defence spokesman, says: "We do provide a large amount of humanitarian relief in Iraq and we do help in reconstruction efforts". This role was not unusual for "our corps of engineers and civil affairs units that have provided assistance in different countries - parts of South America and Bosnia and Kosovo, we also did it in World War 2".

US Agency for International Development (USAID) is working with Iraq's interim government to help Iraqis rebuild their country. USAID programmes are implemented in co-ordination with the UN, the World Bank, the IMF, coalition partners, NGOs and private sector partners. A USAID spokeswoman said "the security of our staff and our partners is our utmost priority".

Dr Frederick Burkle, a key health planner with USAID in Iraq where he served for three months following the US-led invasion in March 2003, is critical of the military involvement in rebuilding work. A medical officer with the Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance, he was one of the first senior US health officials to enter Baghdad and southern Iraq. At present working at the Centre for International Emergency, Disaster and Refugee Studies at the Johns Hopkins University Medical Institutions, Burkle says armed forces should be "prevented from dominating humanitarian assistance".

Traditionally there has been a distinction between the military and the non-military domains. In recent history, however, military forces have become increasingly involved in operations other than war, including provision of relief and services to the local population. Burkle says: "We have a situation where the Iraqi population is totally confused. They cannot distinguish between foreign forces and foreign aid workers".

Aid workers in Iraq tend to keep a low profile and go about their business in inconspicuous vehicles. Mountain of the UN says: "This is not how we operate in Sudan, Congo, Burundi. This is not to say aid workers have not been killed before. There have been numerous efforts; but there has not been a concerted campaign".

In 2003, Burkle's vehicle was ambushed three times in a single day on the streets of Baghdad. On Dec. 4 he was quoted as saying: "The NGOs will tell you that wearing protective gear brings attention and aligns you to the coalition. But it doesn't make any difference who you are now".

Oliver Phillips, UNICEF communications officer in New York City, says the experience of a lot of the people who have been kidnapped "shows that no matter how many steps you take there are no cast iron guarantees that you are safe".

Pentagon officials cite the "changing dynamics" of the enemy. ATO on Dec. 4 quoted a Pentagon source as saying: "We're not fighting an Iraqi government, we're fighting insurgents and dead-enders and criminals who aren't following the standard rules of engagement. Insurgents create a hostile environment on the ground and NGOs aren't comfortable staying there".

According to UN guidelines, humanitarian action must be conducted separately and clearly distinguished from military-led relief operations. At the same time, practical realities on the ground have necessitated various forms of civil-military co-ordination for humanitarian operations. The UN has instructed its staff that the use of military or armed protection for humanitarian agencies is "an extreme precautionary measure" that should be taken only in exceptional circumstances. Foreign aid agencies in Iraq have replaced a major portion of their expatriate staff with local Iraqis. Groups like Christian Aid have partnered with local NGOs.

While instances of foreigners being kidnapped get prominent coverage in the media, groups working in Iraq say most of the people who have been killed, injured and abducted are Iraqis. Burkle says: "You have to question whether these issues have limited humanitarian work. And the answer is yes, of course. Yet some of it goes on by brave people".