Mosul military operation forces 7,000 Iraqi people to flee their homes, UN relief wing says

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that more than 7, 000 Iraqi people are internally displaced as a result of the Mosul military operation in Iraq, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said here Monday.

"The situation is fluid and the numbers and patterns of displacement are fluctuating as the front lines move," Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

The majority of displaced people are sheltering in host communities; some families move out of harm's way only for a short time and quickly return home once conditions allow, he said. "Regardless of displacement pattern, all families are reported to be in a vulnerable condition and need assistance."

"Humanitarian partners continue to provide assistance wherever access allows," he said.

Partners provided assistance in Al Houd within 24 hours of its being retaken from Da'esh, also known as the Islmaic State (IS), on Oct. 18, and in recent days have provided assistance packages in the newly retaken areas of Ibrahim Al Khalil and Al Adla, south and southeast of Mosul, he said.

Iraqi security forces recaptured more villages last Tuesday from the IS militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said.

Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions.

(APD)