Fighting in Iraq has displaced half a million people

The jihadi militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (EIIL) a group linked to al Qaeda, have taken positions on Wednesday inside the city of Baiji, 220 km north of Baghdad (Iraq). This is a town that hosts one of the largest oil refineries and in which, according to security sources cited by Reuters, the jihadists have set fire to a police station and a court. The attacks came a day after the rebels took control of Mosul, the second city in the country with 1.5 milloones inhabitants. The UN reported Tuesday that some 500,000 people have been forced from their homes by Tuesday’s attacks which, added to those displaced by the fighting in Anbar province (west of the country), and an added a million.

The Baiji refinery is protected by 250 guards and the sources of the Iraqi security services have said that militants have sent a delegation to meet with local tribal leaders and convince them to surrender.

The guards have agreed to withdraw the condition, according to Reuters, that move them to another location to ensure their safety. Prime Minister al-Maliki has called on the Kurdish security forces together to fight the rebels EIIL. Meanwhile, the regime of Bashar Assad in Syria, has offered all the necessary support to the neighboring country to fight the “enemy of both,” according to Efe.

After the capture of Mosul by Sunni rebels, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki asked Parliament yesterday the declaration of a state of emergency, a decision that will be debated on Thursday when members meet.

“We are afraid,” said Umm Karam, a worker in the Administration of Mosul, to the BBC. “The situation in the inner city is a mess and no one will help quen” he added.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a statement that those displaced who want to enter the Kurdistan region (north of the country) need a special permit, and to require it to have relatives already residing in that province or someone undertakes to accept them. Many of the displaced who fled Mosul on Tuesday did walk, according to Amnesty.

According to residents of Mosul quoted by the BBC as jihadis waving flags on city buildings and militants announced through loudspeakers that “have come to liberate the city.”

IOM, which has employees in the area, reported Tuesday that “many of the families who have chosen to remain in their homes no longer have electricity or running water, since the distribution systems have been destroyed by fighting and many generators have run out of fuel. “

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Posted by Jamshed Sindhu on Jun 12 2014. Filed under Middle East. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.