IS continuing ‘vicious’ activities against civilians in Iraq

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The Islamic State (IS) is maintaining its “vicious terrorist activities” against civilians in Mosul and other parts of Iraq, the UN envoy for Iraq warned on Monday.

Jan Kubis, the UN envoy for Iraq, told the UN Security Council that supporters of the extremists were still present in parts of the country and that the road ahead will be “extremely challenging.”

Kubis highlighted that freeing other areas of Iraq, such as Hawija and neighborhoods with pockets of resistance in Ninevah, will not be easy.

Despite Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declaring victory in Mosul on July 10, clashes are ongoing in some quarters.

“Iraq must start demining, stabilizing, and rebuilding Mosul so people who fled the fighting can return home,” Kubis stated.

Iraqi security forces must also remove IS cells, criminal gangs, and militias operating outside the government’s control, he added.

The UN envoy spoke of the plight of thousands of people who have been displaced since the offensive to liberate Mosul began in Oct. 2016.

While Iraqi forces were mindful of avoiding civilian deaths during the operation, IS “terrorists showed absolute disregard for human lives and civilization,” he emphasized.

The militants often used civilians as human shields, locking people in their homes and killing those who attempted to flee.

“They butchered [civilians] by using suicide bombers who included females and brainwashed children,” Kubis said.

He stressed the importance of “good governance practices and promoting development” after IS was eliminated from the country.

“The government will have to do everything possible to give the people back their lives in society,” the UN envoy stated.

Editing by G.H. Renaud