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IRAQ-VIOLENCE-UN
UN says violence in Iraq kills 71 civilians in July
BAGHDAD, Aug 2, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – Violence across Iraq killed 71
civilians in July, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI)
said Wednesday.
A UNAMI statement added that 82 civilians were wounded in the terror
attacks and armed conflicts in Iraq in the past month.
It said the number of casualties did not include Iraqi troops and security
members killed and wounded, as the Iraqi military declined to give such
information.
Previous figures of security members’ casualties released by the UNAMI were
dismissed by the Iraqi military as “inaccurate.”
July’s figures showed that Iraqi capital Baghdad was the worst affected
with 63 civilian casualties, as 30 people were killed and 33 others wounded.
The second was the ethnically mixed province of Kirkuk, with 42 civilian
casualties, as eight people were killed and 34 wounded, according to the
statement.
The security situation in Iraq has been dramatically improved after Iraqi
security forces fully defeated the extremist Islamic State (IS) militants
across the country late in 2017.
However, small groups and individuals of extremist militants melted or
regrouped in urban and rugged areas and are carrying out attacks against the
security forces and civilians despite operations from time to time to hunt
them down.
Many blame the chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of
extremist groups in Iraq on the United States, which invaded the country in
March 2003, under the pretext of seeking to destroy weapons of mass
destruction in the country. But no such weapons were found.
BSS/XINHUA/FI/ 0835 hrs