Latifa is 61 years old; she comes from Mossul in northern Iraq once every three months to visit her son, Mohamed, currently interned at Camp Bucca, the US detention facility in Basra.
In order to help family members visit their detained relatives, in 2007 the ICRC continued to contribute to their travel expenses to Camp Bucca and the Divisional Internment Facility at Basra Airport.
More than 11,600 detainees benefited from this programme, while 31,000 family members received an ICRC travel allowance.
Her brown dress and black coat are as clean and neat as if she were attending a special occasion. No-one would guess that she has made a six-day trip from Mossul to Basra. Once in a while, she bends down and wipes the dust off her black shoes.
It is 9 o'clock in the morning and the cold wind is lashing Latifa's face; she tries to cover it with her hands. "I've been waiting outside since 5 o'clock this morning," she says. "I arrived last night at Basra and stayed at my cousin's house. This is the third time I have visited Mohamed, but my other son, Ismail could never come. He is afraid of being kidnapped or even killed."
Among the dozens of people waiting to visit their relatives, there are few men to be seen. Women have to make the trip alone, with their children.
Not far from Latifa, Ali (4) and his sister Nermeen (7) are waiting to see their father. Nermeen holds her brother's hand tightly. She has not seen her father for two years. "I am worried Ali will not recognize his father", says Fatima, the children's mother. "I am always showing him pictures of his father but it has been a long time."
"In a few minutes, I will be able to meet Mohamed and to hold his hands and look into his eyes," says Latifa. "I will see him for two hours and for me, this makes the trip worth a while. At home, I cry alone and sometimes I feel my eyes burning.
"But not today. I know he is unhappy and it would make him even sadder to see me crying. I wear my best clothes and put on the perfume he always liked, so that when I hold his hands, he will have that fragrance for the rest of the day."
Latifa is carrying a few photos of her grandson, Mohamed's son. His name is Ahmed and he is just a month old. His wife had sent them so he could see his first-born.
"All I do is to wait for the time of the visit. My calendar now consists of dates of visits to my son, rather than just months and days. And I will keep on coming as long as I can still walk," she says.
