UNHCR: Daesh Captures 3000+ Iraqis Fleeing Besieged Villages

Local Editor

Daesh [Arabic acronym for "ISIS" / "ISIL"] militants had reportedly captured as many as 3,000 Iraqi civilians attempting to flee besieged villages, the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR said in a daily briefing on the country.

"UNHCR has received reports that ‘ISIL' captured on 4 August up to 3,000 IDPs [internally displaced people] from villages in Hawiga District in Kirkuk Governorate trying to flee to Kirkuk city," the UNHCR report said.

The report added, "Reportedly, 12 of the IDPs have been killed in captivity."

The UNHCR report followed a statement Thursday from the Iraqi Observatory for Human rights, which said about 1,900 civilians had been captured by an estimated 100-120 Daesh militants, who were using people as shields against operations by Iraqi Security Forces. Tens of civilians had been executed, and six burnt.

The fighting had displaced 3.4 million people in Iraq by July 2016.

Daesh's grip on some towns had been broken, but it still controls its de facto capitals of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria.

Last month the UN appealed for $284 million to prepare aid for an assault on Mosul, as well as up to $1.8 billion to deal with the aftermath.

But according to the UN Financial Tracking Service, it had so far received nothing in response.

UNHCR had begun building a site northeast of Mosul for 6,000 people and is preparing another northwest of the city for 15,000, a fraction of those expected to need shelter.

Tens of thousands who fled from the city of Fallujah had still not returned since its recapture from Daesh in June. Three volunteers helping to clear Fallujah of rubble and explosives died while clearing a house on Aug. 1, UNHCR said.

"Although local authorities have suggested that returns to Fallujah could begin in September, the Ministry of Migration and Displacement has stated that it may take another three months before conditions are conducive for large scale returns," it said.

But Iraqi authorities reported 300,000 displaced people had returned to Ramadi district, UNHCR said. Iraqi forces declared victory over the extremist group in Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, in December, but later called a halt to returns after dozens of civilians were killed by mines.

Accordingly, more than 3.3 million Iraqis had been forced from their homes by conflict since the start of 2014.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team