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ISIS conducting scorched earth policy in Mosul
Duhok – Radical group of the Islamic State (ISIS) is conducting “scorched earth” policy in Iraq’s northern city of Mosul, officials said on Friday.According to the United Nations, a humanitarian crisis broke out in Mosul and other parts of Nineveh Governorate amid an ongoing offensive by the US-backed Kurdish and Iraqi forces against ISIS. Humanitarian organisations warned that fumes from burning stockpiles of sulphur dioxide, and oil wells that have been set ablaze, have led to further suffering for civilians in northern Iraq. “Due to the ISIS’ scorched earth policy, [Iraqi] civilians are experiencing near-suffocation and respiratory illnesses,” the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said. The agency reported that the environmental pollution is adding “complexity and danger” to the humanitarian crisis in Mosul. ISIS militants have set more than 15 oil wells on fire in the Qayyarah suburb, northeast of Mosul, Iraqi army officer Karrar al-Saadi told ARA News. “The burning of crude oil led to the release of toxic fumes and gases, causing casualties among civilians as well as Iraqi forces,” the official reported. According to the UNEP, burning crude oil is releasing a wide range of pollutants, including soot and gases that cause skin irritation and shortness of breath. On 23 October, a chlorine gas leak originated from a water plant affected by the fighting in Mosul countryside, caused dozens of casualties among civilians. Last week, a toxic cloud plume spread for dozens of kilometres after stockpiles of sulphur dioxide stored at the Mishraq Sulphate Factory caught fire, causing over 1000 cases of suffocation in Qayyarah, Ijhala, and Makhmour, the UNEP reported. Posted by: badanov 2016-10-29 |
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