Nearly 42,000 people have fled the Iraqi city after the military launched a crackdown to retake control from "Islamic State." The figures have been released by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Image: Reuters/T. Al-Sudaini
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Image: Reuters/T. Al-Sudaini
The IOM said on its website that 41,988 people had left the city "as a result of the ongoing Mosul operations," which began on October 17 this year. A day earlier, the organization reported 34,000 people being displaced by the battle.
Most of those displaced were from the Nineveh province, of which Mosul is the capital. In a report issued last night, the United Nations human rights agency said its humanitarian partners had distributed food, water and medicine to residents and people fleeing the war.
Mosul is the last IS-held city in the area and used to be the militia's de facto capital when it took over parts of Iraq in 2014. Aid organizations have warned that fighting around the city could displace up to a million people in the area.
The Iraqi offensive to regain control of the city involves a 100,000-strong alliance of army soldiers, Kurdish peshmerga fighters and Shiite militias backed by the US. Washington has also provided air support for Iraqi's army.
Earlier this week, Iraqi soldiers discovered a mass grave in a nearby town called Hammam al-Ali as they were advancing towards Mosul. The graves behind an earthen embankment near an agricultural college, held around 100 bodies, mostly decapitated, army officials said. It was unclear who the victims were, but soldiers found a child's stuffed animal and scraps of clothing.
During their two-year rule, IS militants exterminated dozens of people in southern and central Iraq. The UN's human rights agency said it was investigating reports that 50 former Iraqi soldiers had been massacred in a building outside Mosul city, spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters.
The operation to liberate Mosul from "Islamic State"
What has happened in Mosul since the operation to retake the city from the so-called "Islamic State" started in October?
Image: picture-alliance/Anadolu Agency/H. Baban
Iraqi army discover mass grave
While Iraqi troops advanced further into territory held by the so called “Islamic State” in their campaign to recapture Mosul, they found a mass grave which holds about 100
bodies, many of them decapitated. AP footage shows bones and decomposed bodies dug out of the ground by a bulldozer. This Iraqi federal police officer holds a stuffed animal he found on the site.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo
Evidence of brutality
The grave, found near the town of Hammam al-Alil near Mosul, proves to be a dark testimony to the „Islamic State’s“ brutality. IS militants have carried out a series of massacres since seizing large areas of southern and central Iraq in 2014. This photo shows a member of the Iraqi security forces inspecting a building that was used as a prison by Islamic State militants in Hammam al-Alil.
Image: Reuters/T. Al-Sudani
Freed from terror
These displaced Iraqi men from the Hammam al-Alil area celebrate their liberation as they return to their homes after the recapture of their village by Iraqi forces from Islamic State.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Al-Rubaye
Oil fields on fire
Oil wells have been set ablaze by IS in an apparent response to the ongoing military offensive to drive the extremist group out of its stronghold. A military commander said more than 5,000 civilians have been evacuated from eastern parts of Mosul and taken to camps. The surprise attack showed that even while under siege, the group could still sow chaos in parts of Iraq far from its base in Mosul.
Image: Reuters/A. Al-Marjani
What is the fight for Mosul all about?
Smoke rises during clashes between Peshmerga forces and IS militants in the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul. Initially used by the "IS" to establish their caliphate and henceforth the key source of prestige and resources, Mosul is also the base for IS’s chemical weapon operation. The ancient Assyrian city also has formed a vital source of tax revenue and forced labor.
Image: Reuters/A. Lashkari
The role of the Iraqi army and its allies
Iraqi special forces take cover as their unit comes under fire from an Islamic State sniper. Together with Kurdish Peshmerga and Shiite militias, Iraqi forces intensified fighting and moved into more densely populated areas of the city without air support from the US-led coalition due to the high-risk of civilian casualties.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Drobnjakovic)
Kurdish Peshmerga
Meanwhile, Kurdish peshmerga forces decided to focus on other strongholds of resistance in northern Iraq and on the Kurdish-controlled city of Kirkuk, where IS initiated a campaign of violence in response to the advances of the Iraqi army towards Mosul.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Dicenzo
Fleeing from the fighting
The United Nations says over 34,000 people have been displaced from Mosul since the operation began on October 17, with about three quarters settled in camps and the rest in host communities.
