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1,792 killed in violence, armed conflicts in Iraq in October: UN

Xinhua, November 1, 2016 Adjust font size:

Terrorist acts, violence and armed conflicts killed 1,792 Iraqis and wounded 1,358 others in October across Iraq, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) said on Tuesday.

The figures included 1,120 civilians killed and 1,005 wounded, with 672 security members killed and 353 wounded, the UNAMI said in a statement.

The casualties in Iraq's western province of Anbar were excluded, as the casualty figures there for the month were unavailable due to the volatility of the situation on the ground and the disruption of services, the statement said.

"The casualty toll among civilians continues to rise and the civilians continue to pay the ultimate price," the statement quoted the UN envoy to Iraq and the UNAMI chief Jan Kubis as saying.

"With the military operations in Mosul and other areas of Nineveh (province) underway while Daesh (Islamic State group) continues to apply its terrorist tactics using civilians as human shields and executing those that resist," Kubis said.

He also said that the United Nations emphasises that "all actions necessary must be undertaken to ensure the protection of the civilian inhabitants from the effects of armed conflict and violence," according to the statement.

UNAMI statement came as the Iraqi security forces backed by anti-IS international coalition are carrying out a major offensive to drive out the IS militants from its last major stronghold in the city of Mosul in northern Iraq.

Iraq has witnessed intensifying violence since the IS extremist group took control of parts of its northern and western regions in June 2014.

Many blame the current chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups, such as the IS, on the U.S. that invaded and occupied Iraq in March 2003, under the pretext of seeking to destroy weapons of mass destruction in the country.

The war led to the ouster and eventual execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, but no such weapons have been found. Endit