Iraqis slow Mosul advance to clear neighborhoods

BAGHDAD — Iraqi troops fired at positions held by the Islamic State group in and around the northern city of Mosul on Thursday but did not advance as they regrouped and cleared neighborhoods once occupied by the extremists, military officials said.

Troops are screening residents fleeing from Mosul, searching for any IS militants trying to sneak out among the more than 34,000 civilians fleeing to displacement camps and host communities in nearby provinces.

Amnesty International reported allegations against security forces of arbitrary detention, forced disappearances and ill-treatment of prisoners, including an account that up to six people were “extrajudicially executed” in late October over suspected ties to IS.

The London-based rights organization said the alleged killings took place near the area of Shura and Qayara outside Mosul, and it urged the government to investigate.

“Men in Federal Police uniform have carried out multiple unlawful killings, apprehending and then deliberately killing in cold blood residents in villages south of Mosul,” said Lynn Maalouf, deputy director for research at Amnesty’s Beirut office.

“In some cases the residents were tortured before they were shot dead execution-style,” she said, adding it was “crucial” for Iraqi authorities to bring those responsible to justice.

“Without effective measures to suppress and punish serious violations, there is a real risk that we could see war crimes of this kind repeated in other Iraqi villages and towns during the Mosul offensive,” Maalouf added.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi denied the report, calling it “incorrect information,” and saying in a statement that IS fighters were the ones responsible for the killing of civilians.

Since the offensive to retake Iraq’s second-largest city began Oct. 17, the Shiite-led government has tried to prevent revenge attacks against the mainly Sunni residents of Mosul and surrounding areas. State-sanctioned Shiite militias and Kurdish forces said they won’t enter the city, and the government has vowed to investigate any human rights violations and hold people accountable.