Residents of the Iraqi city of Hawija, in Kirkuk Province, are continuing to leave their homes, fearing Daesh violence and looking for a safe refuge, Anadolu reported on Sunday.
According to Michael Omar of the Kurdish Peshmerga forces, Hawija’s residents under the control of Daesh are living in “difficult conditions” and face “all dangers” while moving to safe zones. “We receive dozens of families seeking safe places every day,” he said.
Omar explained that they put the refugees in temporary camps and other places in neighbouring cities. Peshmerga militias have arrested a number of Daesh members masquerading as civilians, he added.
Meanwhile, Khattab Hamid, one of those displaced, said that as soon as the civilians received information about the Peshmerga preparations to attack Daesh from three different sides, they recognised that fleeing from their homes was the safest option. “We decided to flee secretly and take refuge in the nearest Peshmerga base because Daesh does not allow civilians under its control to leave; the group uses them as human shields.”
Hamid noted that the Daesh members in Hawija are not Iraqis, but include Europeans, Chechens and Egyptians. The extremists, he pointed out, issue new declarations every day. The last one, he claimed, was an order for former policemen and troops to pay $800 to have an amnesty.
A large part of Kirkuk Province has been under Daesh control for more than 18 months. Iraqi and other groups have been trying to push the militants out, but have failed so far.
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