United Nations – The UN says no fewer than 741 Iraqis were killed and 1,374 injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in April.
This is contained in a report on “Casualty Figures recorded by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI)’’ released on Monday.
UNAMI also indicated that 331 members of the Iraqi Security Forces, including Peshmerga, SWAT and militias fighting alongside the Iraqi Army but excluding Anbar Operations, were killed and 401 members were injured.
It added that the overall casualty figures were down from the previous month of March, where a total of 1,119 were killed and 1,561 injured.
It said that in April, Baghdad was the worst affected Governorate with 874 civilian casualties.
Reacting to the report, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Iraq, Mr Ján Kubiš, expressed deep concern over the incessant violence.
“It pains us to see the continuing bloodletting and loss of life, particularly among civilians who are paying a high price as a result of bombings and the armed clashes.
“Terrorists have used suicide attacks to target cafés, places of worship, pilgrims and markets in a wicked, unrelenting campaign to cause maximum casualties and inflict untold suffering on the population”, he said in a statement.
UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, had on March 26, during a visit to Bagdad, underscored the world body’s support to Iraq in its fight against terrorism.
He had called on Iraq’s regional and international partners to extend succour to the country in its struggle against terrorism, with the proviso that the help or support should be given in concert with the Iraqi government.
Ban said that Islamic States (IS) had wreaked havoc on minority groups in Iraq, killing, kidnapping and raping many of them aside from destroying cherished antiquities.
He cited a list of IS-instigated horrors, saying that there were 3,500 Yazidi women enslaved by the group, 10 million Iraqis in need of humanitarian assistance, over three million forced to immigrate, and 7,500 killed in one year.
Ban had urged the Iraqi government to broaden its efforts to regain the rule of law and spread security in all parts of the country, in addition to striving for national reconciliation. (NAN)