Attachments
Feature
Iraq
Affected areas Kirkuk and Salah Din governorates
Cause of displacement Conflict
Figures More than 133,000 new displacements between 21 September and 17 October
Context
More than 33,000 people were displaced between 21 September and 5 October from Hawija district in Kirkuk governorate and Shirqat district in Salah Din governorate as the Iraqi army launched parallel offensives to drive out Islamic State in the Iraq and Levant (ISIL) fighters. People fled to surrounding areas, some also crossing into Ninewa governorate. “Among them are older people, new-born babies and children who don’t know where their parents are. Although the government has now declared the [Hawija] offensive over, these civilians are still in immediate need of food, water, shelter, and protection and safety,” said the Norwegian Refugee Council’s country director in Iraq, Heidi Diedrich, on 5 October (NRC, 5 Oct 2017; IOM, 5 Oct 2017)