Syria war adds to women’s woes
qayara air base (Iraq) — The Daesh group appears to be using tens of thousands of people as “human shields” in and around Mosul, where Iraqi forces are waging a large-scale offensive aimed at retaking the country’s second largest city, the UN human rights office said on Friday.
It has received reports of more than 200 people being killed for refusing to comply with Daesh orders or previously belonging to Iraqi security forces. It said “credible reports” suggest Daesh has been forcing tens of thousands from their homes in districts around Mosul.
“Daesh’s depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields,” spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in Geneva.
She said 232 people, mostly former officers, were reportedly shot on Wednesday, and 24 on Tuesday.
The UN and rights groups have expressed fear that more than 200,000 civilians could be displaced in the opening weeks of the offensive. Mosul is still home to more than a million people.
Daesh has built up elaborate defenses on the outskirts of the city, including an extensive tunnel network, and has planted large numbers of explosive booby traps to slow the troops’ progress.
The US military says Iraqi forces have retaken 40 villages from Daesh near Mosul since the operation began. But most of the fighting has taken place in a belt of sparsely populated farming communities ringing the city. —