Diyala, Kirkuk suffer Iraq’s worst civilian casualty rates in June: UN
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict across Iraq killed 76 civilians and injured 129 over the month of June 2018, according to United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) figures. Diyala and Kirkuk suffered the highest number of casualties.
Diyala Governorate suffered 52 civilian casualties – 16 killed and 36 injured. This was followed by Kirkuk, which suffered 10 killed and 36 injured, and the Iraqi capital Baghdad, which suffered 19 killed and 18 injured.
Villages and security forces in Diyala and Kirkuk have come under attack by ISIS remnants operating out of the Hamrin Mountains.
“Large territories in Diyala are currently controlled by ISIS, including areas in Qaratapa, Nada, Naftkhana, Wadi Salab, Sheikh Baba gardens, and Kani Masi. These areas are home to ISIS militants, and there are no forces there to confront them,” Major Ahmad Mustafa, a Peshmerga intelligence officer, told Rudaw earlier in June.
The rise in attacks in these areas has led military officials and community leaders to call for the Peshmerga to be redeployed. Kurdish forces were withdrawn from these disputed areas following the events of October 16.
In late June, Iraq’s military commander for Diyala province called for a joint operation with the Peshmerga to defeat ISIS remnants.
“We have called on the command of Iraqi joint operations for a joint military operation with the Peshmerga to step up security in places east of Salahaddin and north of Diyala where ISIS militants have resumed activities with recent incidents of murder and kidnapping,” Lieutenant General Mazar Azzawi, commander of Diyala operations, told Rudaw.
After a number of ISIS attacks and kidnappings in their villages, a delegation of the Kakai minority from Kirkuk province visited UNAMI’s Sulaimani office asking for the redeployment of Peshmerga to their areas.
“We visited UNAMI. We told them that the Kakais of Kirkuk are faring through very bad conditions, that they don't have security. We asked them to urgently take over security for the area,” Sayid Sarhad Kakai, a member of the Kakai Council, told reporters following the meeting in late June.
Sarhad added that since the Peshmerga left the area, the Kakais have been living in very bad conditions in and around Kirkuk and that the Iraqi Army isn’t providing security.
A police source told Rudaw that one person was killed and 21 others wounded. At least 15 members of security forces are among the wounded.
No group has immediately claimed responsibility.
Diyala Governorate suffered 52 civilian casualties – 16 killed and 36 injured. This was followed by Kirkuk, which suffered 10 killed and 36 injured, and the Iraqi capital Baghdad, which suffered 19 killed and 18 injured.
The casualty figures include civilians performing non-combat functions, such as civil defense, personal security teams, facilities protection police, fire department personnel, and regular police units. When police are discounted from the figures, the national civilian toll is 68 killed and 118 injured.
Villages and security forces in Diyala and Kirkuk have come under attack by ISIS remnants operating out of the Hamrin Mountains.
“Large territories in Diyala are currently controlled by ISIS, including areas in Qaratapa, Nada, Naftkhana, Wadi Salab, Sheikh Baba gardens, and Kani Masi. These areas are home to ISIS militants, and there are no forces there to confront them,” Major Ahmad Mustafa, a Peshmerga intelligence officer, told Rudaw earlier in June.
The rise in attacks in these areas has led military officials and community leaders to call for the Peshmerga to be redeployed. Kurdish forces were withdrawn from these disputed areas following the events of October 16.
In late June, Iraq’s military commander for Diyala province called for a joint operation with the Peshmerga to defeat ISIS remnants.
“We have called on the command of Iraqi joint operations for a joint military operation with the Peshmerga to step up security in places east of Salahaddin and north of Diyala where ISIS militants have resumed activities with recent incidents of murder and kidnapping,” Lieutenant General Mazar Azzawi, commander of Diyala operations, told Rudaw.
After a number of ISIS attacks and kidnappings in their villages, a delegation of the Kakai minority from Kirkuk province visited UNAMI’s Sulaimani office asking for the redeployment of Peshmerga to their areas.
“We visited UNAMI. We told them that the Kakais of Kirkuk are faring through very bad conditions, that they don't have security. We asked them to urgently take over security for the area,” Sayid Sarhad Kakai, a member of the Kakai Council, told reporters following the meeting in late June.
Sarhad added that since the Peshmerga left the area, the Kakais have been living in very bad conditions in and around Kirkuk and that the Iraqi Army isn’t providing security.
On June 9, a string of explosions rocked Kirkuk city, killing two and injuring dozens. On July 1, a suicide bomber targeted a warehouse in the city storing election ballots.
A police source told Rudaw that one person was killed and 21 others wounded. At least 15 members of security forces are among the wounded.
No group has immediately claimed responsibility.