UN: Reports of Abuse and Killing of Civilians Fleeing Fallujah

The United Nations announced on Tuesday, June 8, that it has "credible and very distressing reports" concerning the violation of the rights of men and boys fleeing from the city of Fallujah by militias accompanying Iraqi security forces. Fallujah is under the control of militants from the Islamic State group. About two weeks ago, the Iraqi army, along with local police forces, Shiite militias known as Hashd al-Shaabi, and Sunni tribal militias, began operations to liberate the city from the Islamic State group. According to Reuters, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, stated that witnesses described how security checks on men and boys fleeing Fallujah sometimes turned into physical abuse and other human rights violations aimed at obtaining forced confessions from them. He added that unverified reports have also been received regarding the execution of some civilians. Meanwhile, some civilians who have fled Fallujah say that Islamic State militants are using food as a means to recruit fighters. According to these reports, these individuals claim that Islamic State militants have placed food warehouses in Fallujah under strict security measures. After the siege of the city intensified by government forces and food supplies dwindled, they visit families and offer food in exchange for one family member volunteering to fight alongside them. One woman who fled from the Al-Sajer area near Fallujah told Reuters: "The ISIS offered one of our neighbors a bag of flour in exchange for their son joining their group, but the father refused and then fled the city." She added: "The situation in the city is very difficult; in the few remaining shops, there is nothing left but dates stored for a long time, which are sold at very high prices." Another displaced person who recently escaped from the Islamic State-controlled area in Al-Karma, north of Fallujah, said in an interview with Reuters: "ISIS militants asked families in Al-Sajer to move to the center of Fallujah, which is a clear attempt by them to use us as human shields. But we hid; there was gunfire and bombing, and we remained hidden until Iraqi forces arrived to rescue us." Another displaced person stated that Islamic State militants took hundreds of people with them to the center of Fallujah. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi ordered a slowdown in operations in Fallujah last week to protect the lives of civilians trapped in the city. The city has been besieged by government forces for months, a situation that has severely complicated humanitarian conditions. The United Nations states that around 50,000 civilians are still trapped in Fallujah.