GENEVA
One million people have fled their homes in Iraq - including 500,000 in Mosul following the violence around Iraq’s second city in recent weeks, the United Nations said on Friday.
The figure for refugees escaping the Mosul area following attacks led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) includes 250,000 children, Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said.
Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
A further 25,000 people have been displaced but remain within Mosul. There are 500,000 refugees who have fled the conflict between militants and government forces in Iraq's western Anbar province, Laerke added.
ISIL controls parts of Syria and Anbar and has seized a number of other towns in northern Iraq, including Mosul, since June 10.
No migration wave expected from Iraq to Turkey
Turkey does not expect migration wave from Iraq as the Kurdish controlled regions in Iraq's north is a safe place for displaced people fleeing attacks by militants led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, according to diplomatic sources.
"There are no danger signs in the Kurdish Regional Government now, but Turkey will do whatever is needed in case of any danger," said sources.
Unrest is growing high in Iraq since forces led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have extended their reach across Iraq since June 10, causing a mass displacement of civilians.
About 56,000 Shia Turkmen have fled the Turkmen-majority city of Tal Afar seized by ISIL-led militants, and have taken shelter in Iraq's Sincar region.
The 31 Turkish truck drivers and 49 Turkish Consulate staff including the consul general and family members are being held hostage in Iraq since June 10.
Sources also claim that the 31 Turkish drivers were not kidnapped by ISIL militants, but other armed-militants in Iraq.
The UN Refugee Agency is concerned about the safety of Syrian refugees at Al Qaim refugee camp, spokesman Adrian Edwards said. The camp, in Anbar province, is 25km from the Syrian border and houses 1,500 Syrian refugees. On Tuesday ISIL militants seized the nearby crossing border – 350km west of Baghdad – after Iraqi forces withdrew from the area.
