The civilians from southern villages appear to have been forced into the city by ISIS, and witnesses said they looked to be in poor condition, with no food or accommodation. However, it is unclear what ISIS’ intention is for these particular civilians. The United Nations had also received reports that civilians suspected of disloyalty had … Read more
Iraqi Shi’ite militias said on Saturday they had launched an offensive towards the west of Mosul, an operation that would tighten the noose around Islamic State’s Iraq stronghold but could inflame sectarian tension in the mainly Sunni region. The battle for Mosul is expected to be the biggest in the 13 years of turmoil unleashed … Read more
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant appears to be using tens of thousands of people as “human shields” in and around Mosul, where Iraqi forces are waging an offensive aimed at retaking the country’s second biggest city. The UN human rights office also said on Friday it received reports of more than 200 people … Read more
ISIS has “executed” 232 people near Mosul and taken tens of thousands of people to use as human shields against advancing Iraqi forces, the UN says. A spokeswoman for the UN’s human rights arm told CNN that the terror group had carried out the mass killings on Wednesday, punishing people who had defied its orders. … Read more
Russia’s seat on the UN Human Rights Council is under threat due to its support of the Syrian government’s air campaign in Aleppo. More than 80 human rights and aid organisations, including Human Rights Watch, CARE International and Refugees International, have urged UN member states to drop Russia from the Human Rights Council over its … Read more
An official said the killings were to avenge the death of one of ISIL’s commanders Fighters have killed at least 30 civilians, including children, after abducting them in the remote Afghan province of Ghor, according to an Afghan police official. Suspected ISIL fighters killed dozens of civilians on Tuesday in the Firozkoh district in revenge … Read more
Parliament in Iraq has voted to ban the sale, import and production of alcohol, with backers of the move arguing that its availability contradicts Islam and is unconstitutional. Opponents argue that the vote infringes constitutional guarantees of freedom of religious belief for minority groups such as Christians. They say they will appeal against the surprise … Read more
Thousands of people have fled the Mosul area and more are expected as Iraqi troops move on the city to liberate it from the so-called Islamic State (IS). Some 5,000 people have crossed the border into Syria in the last 10 days, the aid agency Save the Children says. They have arrived at the al-Hol … Read more
Some 900 people have fled the Iraqi city of Mosul and crossed the border into Syria, the UN refugee agency says. This is the first large group of civilians confirmed to have escaped since the Iraqi government began its offensive to liberate Mosul from the so-called Islamic State (IS) on Monday. Up to 1.5 million … Read more
The fight in Mosul is projected to last 60 days The battle to recapture Mosul from ISIS could take two months, a Peshmerga military commander told CNN on Tuesday, the second day of the long-awaited offensive to liberate Iraq’s second city. Sirwan Barzani, a brigadier general, said it would likely take two weeks for advancing … Read more
Kurdish forces are rolling in from the east The EU should be prepared for returning jihadists if the so-called Islamic State (IS) is driven out of its Iraqi stronghold, Mosul, an official warns. Security Commissioner Julian King said even a small number of militants would pose “a serious threat that we must prepare ourselves for”. … Read more
Iraqi pro-government forces have made gains at the start of a large-scale operation to retake Mosul, the last major stronghold of the so-called Islamic State (IS) in the country. Iraqi government troops and Kurdish fighters launched their push towards the city in the early hours of Monday. IS seized Mosul during a lightning offensive in … Read more
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the start of military operations to liberate the northern city of Mosul from Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants early Monday, launching the country on its toughest battle since American troops left nearly five years ago. State TV showed a brief written statement in the early hours … Read more
ISIS in hot water as battle for Mosul begins The offensive to liberate Mosul from ISIS control has begun, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a televised statement early Monday. The fight is expected to last weeks, if not months, and if the battles to wrest Falluja and Ramadi from ISIS’ grip are indicators, … Read more
The small northern town holds great value for IS because of a prophecy of an apocalyptic battle Turkish-backed rebels have captured the symbolically important Syrian town of Dabiq from the Islamic State group, rebel commanders and monitors say. The rebels took Dabiq after “IS members withdrew”, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The … Read more
The Iraqi Air Force dropped thousands of leaflets over Mosul on Saturday night to warn residents of a looming offensive on the ISIS-held city. “It’s victory time,” blares a headline on the newspaper-style leaflets, quoting Iraqi President Haider al-Abadi in remarks directed at Mosul’s residents. “Time to celebrate a clean Iraq without ‘Daesh’ (ISIS) or … Read more
Turkish-backed Syrian rebels are advancing on Dabiq, a symbolic stronghold of so-called Islamic State. The small town holds great value to IS because of a prophecy of an apocalyptic battle, and features heavily in its propaganda. The operation began as US and Russian envoys met in Switzerland to discuss possible routes to a new ceasefire. … Read more
Two of the dismissed recruits of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) have revealed on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm that, they have received offers from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Boko Haram after they stated that, they were being compelled to join these militant groups. Speaking in an exclusive interview with Kwame Tutu … Read more
Security Analyst, Irbard Ibrahim, has described the discourse around the dismissal of some 501 military recruits in December 2015 as worrying. The peace ambassador and governance expert in an interview with Kwame Tutu on Rainbow Radio 87.5fm, expressed disappointment in the way and manner the issue has been addressed. The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) in … Read more
The death in a prison cell of a Syrian refugee suspected of planning a bomb attack in Germany is a judicial scandal, his lawyer has said. Jaber al-Bakr, 22, hanged himself in a jail in Leipzig with his shirt and the government has demanded an immediate inquiry. His lawyer said the prison was aware Bakr … Read more