[QUOTE]At least 1,959 members of the Iraqi security forces were killed across the country in November, the UN says.
It is almost three times the figure for October, when the government launched a major offensive to retake the city of Mosul from so-called Islamic State.
The number of civilians killed in November was 926, while 930 others were injured.
The UN special representative for Iraq, Jan Kubis, [URL="https://twitter.com/UNIraq/status/804344118323380224"]said[/URL] the casualty figures were "staggering".
"In its desperate attempt to cling on to territory it controls in Mosul and Nineveh areas, [IS] has been employing the most vicious tactics, using civilians' homes as firing positions as well as abducting and forcibly moving civilians, effectively using them as human shields," he added.
Mr Kubis noted that the Iraqi security forces had declared that they were making utmost efforts during the six-week-old Mosul offensive to avoid putting civilians in harm's way, often taking additional casualties as a result.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE]No regional breakdown was provided for casualties among security forces personnel, who include members of the army, police officers engaged in combat, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, interior ministry troops, and militiamen.
The International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) meanwhile warned that the offensive to retake Mosul could take months, prompting more and more of the up to 1.5 million civilians believed to be living there to try to flee their homes.
Some 77,000 people have been displaced so far, with many staying in their homes as the government suggested.
[/QUOTE]
[URL]http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-38173574[/URL]
To put it in perspective, the US has lost 4,497 servicemen in Iraq since 2003, so the Iraqis have lost about half that just in the last month
And the Battle of Mosul is still far from over
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.