Mosul Battle: ISIS Kills Civilians, Including 7-Year-Old Child, Fleeing Iraqi City, UN Says

A seven-year-old child was among several civilians killed in firing by the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, in Iraq’s Mosul last week, the United Nations Human Rights Council said Tuesday. ISIS militants have been shooting people fleeing the troubled city in what the agency called “serious breaches” of international human rights and law.

On Nov. 25, the extremist group publicly shot dead 27 civilians in Muhandiseen Park in northern Mosul city. And on Nov. 22, an ISIS sniper killed the seven-year-old who was running toward the Iraqi military’s lines in Adan neighborhood in eastern Mosul.

“We continue to receive reports of serious breaches of international human rights and international humanitarian law by ISIL in and around Mosul. [ISIS] has been installing rocket launchers and placing snipers on the rooftops of civilian houses. Those who refuse to allow their houses to be used in this way are threatened or killed,” the human rights agency said.

“We are also deeply worried about the fate of hundreds of people who have reportedly being abducted by [ISIS] and moved to unknown locations. [ISIS] is also continuing to abduct and forcibly move civilians, and to kill those it suspects of leaking information to the ISF [Iraqi security forces],” the agency added.

Last month, the Iraqi government launched an offensive to retake ISIS-stronghold Mosul, which was captured by the militant group in 2014. Initial advances during the campaign have slowed down mostly because about 1 million civilians still remain in Mosul. This is preventing the Iraqi forces and allies in a U.S.-led coalition from using added weapons. Moreover, ISIS resistance in the city of Mosul has also led to the offensive’s slow pace.