UN says violence in Iraq killed over 5,500 civilians in 2014

PanARMENIAN.Net - The United Nations says violence in Iraq has killed more than 5,500 civilians over the first six months of 2014, according to the Associated Press.

That time period corresponds with an offensive by the Islamic State extremist group and other Sunni militants that has overrun a huge chunk of northern and western Iraq.

In a report released Friday, the UN mission to Iraq said that at least 5,576 civilians were killed and another 11,665 wounded in Iraq since the beginning of the year.

In all of 2013, the UN reported just over 7,800 civilians killed. That was the highest annual death toll in years.

The new report also documents human rights violations by the Islamic State group as well as Iraqi security forces and associated groups.