2014 deadliest year in Iraq for civilians since 2006-7 bloodshed: U.N.
Source: Reuters
2014 deadliest year in Iraq for civilians since 2006-7 bloodshed: U.N.
BAGHDAD Fri Jan 2, 2015 6:24am EST
(Reuters) - Violence in Iraq in 2014 killed at least 12,282 civilians, making it the deadliest year since the sectarian bloodshed of 2006-07, the United Nations said in a statement.
The majority of the deaths - nearly 8,500 - occurred during the second half of the year following the expansion of the Sunni Muslim Islamic State insurgency in June out of Anbar province leading to widespread clashes with security forces.
Yet again, the Iraqi ordinary citizen continues to suffer from violence and terrorism ... This is a very sad state of affairs, said Nickolay Mladenov, head of the U.N. political mission in Iraq, in a statement released on Thursday.
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The figures show that violence has not abated since 2013 when 7,818 civilians were killed, the U.N. said. The bloodshed remains below the levels seen in 2006 and 2007 when sectarian Shi'ite-Sunni killings reached their peak.
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Read more:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/02/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-deaths-idUSKBN0KB0JR20150102