ISIL capture of Iraqi town sparks human crisis: UN
Iran Press TV
Sun Aug 3, 2014 4:53PM GMT
The United Nations says the capture of the Iraqi town of Sinjar by Takfiri ISIL terrorists has sparked a "humanitarian tragedy."
"A humanitarian tragedy is unfolding in Sinjar," the top UN envoy in Iraq, Nickolay Mladenov, said in a statement issued on Sunday after the ISIL militants captured the northern town, which lies near the Syrian border.
The statement further said some reports put the number of people forced to escape from the town at 200,000. Sinjar in normal times had an estimated population of 310,000.
The UN is very deeply worried about 'the physical safety of these civilians," Mladenov said, expressing concern over the fate of those civilians who fled in the Jabal Sinjar mountains.
"The humanitarian situation of these civilians is reported as dire, and they are in urgent need of basic items, including food, water and medicine," the statement noted.
During the last two days, the ISIL militants have captured the towns of Sinjar, Wana and Zumar in Iraq's north after driving out Kurdish security forces. Reports said that they also seized two oilfields in the region.
Meanwhile, Mladenov called on authorities of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region and the central government in Baghdad to cooperate fully in addressing the crisis.
Sinjar had sheltered thousands of people displaced by the ISIL assault launched in the region nearly two months ago.
The Takfiri ISIL militants took control of Mosul, in a lightning advance on June 10, which was followed by the fall of Tikrit, located 140 kilometers (87 miles) northwest of the capital, Baghdad.
The Iraqi army, backed by tribal forces and volunteers, has been engaged in heavy battle with the militants on different fronts and has so far been able to push back militants in several areas, including in Tikrit.
MR/AB
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