Baghdad, 1 March 2015 – According to casualty figures released today by UNAMI, a total of 1,103 Iraqis were killed and another 2,280 were wounded in acts of terrorism and violence in February*.  The number of civilians killed was 611 (Including 30 civilian police), and the number of civilians injured was 1,353 (including 29 civilian police).

A further 492 members of the Iraqi Army (including Peshmerga, SWAT and militias fighting alongside the Iraqi Army / Not including casualties from Anbar Operations) were killed and 927 were injured.

Baghdad was the worst affected Governorate with 1,204 civilian casualties (329 killed, 875 injured).  Diyala recorded 73 killed and 69 injured; Salahadin 39 killed and 54 injured; and Ninewa 40 killed and 17 injured.

According to information obtained by UNAMI from the Health Directorate in Anbar, the Governorate suffered a total of 372 Civilian casualties (81 killed and 291 injured).  This included 23 killed and 196 injured in Ramadi and 58 killed and 95 injured in Fallujah.

“Daily terrorist attacks perpetrated by ISIL continue to deliberately target all Iraqis.  There are also concerning reports of a number of revenge killings by armed groups in areas recently liberated from ISIL.  I look forward to the results of the investigation initiated by the Government in the recent reported massacre which took place in Diyala province,” the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Iraq (SRSG), Mr. Nickolay Mladenov said.

He also underlined that an exclusively military solution to the problem of ISIL is impossible.  “I therefore welcome the consistent calls for unity by the President, the Prime Minister and the Speaker of Parliament.  Any effort to achieve unity through reconciliation must be based on the Constitution and the full participation of political, religious and community leaders from across Iraq,” the SRSG further stated.

*CAVEATS: In general, UNAMI has been hindered in effectively verifying casualties in conflict areas.  Figures for casualties from Anbar Governorate are provided by the Health Directorate and are noted above. In some cases, UNAMI could only partially verify certain incidents.  UNAMI has also received, without being able to verify, reports of large numbers of casualties along with unknown numbers of persons who have died from secondary effects of violence after having fled their homes due to exposure to the elements, lack of water, food, medicines and health care.  For these reasons, the figures reported have to be considered as the absolute minimum.

***

For more information, please contact: Ms. Eliana Nabaa, Director of Public Information/Spokesperson United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, Phone: +964 790 193 1281, Email: nabaa@un.org  or the UNAMI Public Information Office: unami-information@un.org