A UK-based international rights group has warned that minorities in Iraq face ethnic cleansing by the IS terrorists.
Minority Rights Group International issued a report on Thursday, stating that the civilian death toll in Iraq almost doubled to over 12,610 during January-September compared with the same period last year.
The group, which works to secure the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples, added in its report that several minorities in Iraq, including Christians, Izadi Kurds and Turkmen, have been subjected to murder, kidnappings and sexual violence.
The report warned that the minorities are in danger of extinction in the face of the ongoing atrocities committed by IS in Iraq.“At least, half a million people have been forced to flee their villages in Nineveh province, home to minority communities for thousands of years,” the report said.
The rights group added that members of minority groups who have not fled Iraq live in constant fear for their safety.
The report also highlights the fact that religious sites of those minority groups are the target of IS attacks and the people are afraid of revealing their religious identities.
Iraq has faced brutal violence by the IS terrorist group across the country’s north and west since early June. The IS terrorists have threatened all communities, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians and Izadi Kurds, during their advances in Iraq.
