NEW YORK, August 12 (RIA Novosti) – Iraqi civilians, who are trapped in Islamic State-run territory, face abduction, forced relocation and misdirected attacks from Iraq’s air force, a human rights worker based in northern Iraq told RIA Novosti Tuesday.
“Islamic State commanders have given minority communities an unambiguous message – convert to Islam, leave or die,” said Donatella Rovera, a crisis manager for the rights group Amnesty International, said.
“Survivors describe their male relatives being rounded up and executed and women and children in their families being abducted. A number of families from one Iraqi minority group, who still live under ISIS rule, said they were forced to convert to Islam and cannot leave the area,” she added.
The US has launched airstrikes against the Islamic State, which is also known as ISIS and ISIL. The Sunni Muslim group controls swathes of Iraq and Syria and recent attacks on northern Iraq have forced tens of thousands of Christians to flee their homes.
“Millions of Sunni Muslims still live in ISIS-controlled areas – not always by choice,” added Rovera.
“Several have already been killed in Iraqi air force strikes on these areas. All forces operating in the area must distinguish between military objectives and civilians; attacks can only be directed at military targets,” she stressed.
The UN has warned that tens of thousands of civilians remain trapped on a mountain in northern Iraq, after members of the Yezidi ethnic minority fled there 10 days ago when fighters from Islamic State seized the town of Sinjar.
