13 July 2017 – The liberation of Mosul has marked an “important milestone” in the global fight against Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh), the United Nations Security Council today, welcoming the announcement by Iraqi authorities that the city has been freed of the terrorist group.
“As the Iraqi Security Forces liberate the remaining pockets of ISIL-controlled territory […] all parties must comply with their obligations under international law, including, as applicable, human rights and international humanitarian law, particularly with respect to the protection of the civilian population,” the Security Council members said in a press statement today.
They also recognized the Iraqi Government’s ongoing partnership with the UN to stabilize liberated areas across the country and called on all Iraqis to continue to work towards that end, including through a redoubled focus on national reconciliation and the safe and voluntary return or reintegration of the millions displaced.
The members of the Council also called for ensuring accountability for all violations and abuses of human rights and humanitarian laws.
Further to the statement, the Council members expressed their sympathies and condolences to all those who have suffered, and to the families of those who have perished in the fight against ISIL.
They also underscored the need to ensure justice for ISIL’s victims and survivors of its crimes, in Iraq and across the region.
Follow this news feed: United Nations