Islamic State holds 400 Yezidi, Shi’ite women captive in Iraq's Tel AfarNovember 3, 2016 - 14:42 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Islamic State (IS) militants are keeping nearly 400 women captives from the Kurdish Yezidi and Shi’ite Muslim communities in Tel Afar, said a member of the Iraqi parliament, according to BasNews. MP Nahla Hababi, a representative of Iraqi Turkmens, told BasNews on Wednesday, November 2 that the woman captives are subjected to a serious threat as the Iraqi forces are pushing deeper into IS-held areas. “Before launching an assault to liberate the areas, counter-terrorism forces and the Hashd al-Shaabi [pro-government Shi’ite militias] need to conduct a rescue operation and bring these captives to safety,” Hababi urged. The MP believes IS insurgents are intending to use the woman captives as human shields against coalition airstrikes. However, she said, the extremist group may execute them at any point of the operations. Following the fall of Mosul into the hands of IS back in June 2014, the jihadists overrun the predominantly Yezidi town of Sinjar and took more than 5,000 Yezidi women and children to their slave markets in Mosul and Raqqa. Nearly 1,800 of them have so far been rescued or they managed to escape the group. But thousands of them are yet at the hand of the jihadist group, forced into sex slavery and inhuman punishments. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Titus, Bilirakis lead legislation to sanction Azerbaijani war criminals Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) have introduced the bipartisan legislation. Armenia: Defense Ministry warns against involving army in political processes The Ministry’s statement came after a video surfaced online, showing soldiers joining the protests in Tavush. Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. |