UN mission in Iraq asks govt to probe foreign nationals' abductions

United Nations: The UN mission in Iraq has asked authorities in the country to investigate the incidents of extrajudicial killings and abductions, including those of Indian and Turkish nationals and bring the perpetrators to justice.

The UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) said in a report released yesterday more than 1,000 people have been killed in Iraq in June so far.

Over 300 were killed during the same period in Baghdad and areas in the south, many of them as a result of car bombs.

The report said that abductions also continue in northern provinces and Baghdad, with 48 Turkish citizens and around 40 Indian nationals abducted in Mosul this month.

“The Mission has urged Iraqi authorities to swiftly carry out their obligation to thoroughly investigate the incidents and to make every effort to bring all perpetrators to justice,” spokesperson for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Stephane Dujarric told reporters.

The UNAMI report said abductions in Iraq include a number of cases of foreigners, such as the 48 Turkish citizens abducted from Turkey’s consulate when the ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) captured Mosul.

In addition, around 40 Indian nationals working for an Iraqi construction company were also kidnapped.

At least 757 people were killed and nearly 600 were injured due to the conflict in Nineveh, Diyala and Salah al-Din Provinces.

The number includes verified summary executions and extrajudicial killings, it said.

On the Secretary-General’s recommendations to countries in the region, Dujarric said that the UN Chief has called on countries in the region to do all they can to bring the situation in Iraq and Syria under control.

Last week, Amnesty International had said that evidence had emerged which suggested that several hundred Indian nationals may be stranded in the Najaf province of Iraq, unable to return home because their employer refuses to return their passports.

Amnesty had said that all the workers are reportedly employed by an infrastructure and construction company.

Amnesty International India spoke with some of these workers, who said they have not been paid salaries for the past five months, it said.

PTI