Civilians fleeing the fighting in Mosul are criticizing
airstrikes that have been deadly to non-combatants. They say that the militants
are long gone by the time any targets are hit, leaving only civilians to be
killed. Human Rights Watch backs up that opinion. And, in a statement,
the group called the use of non-precision rockets by the Interior Ministry “a
serious violation of the laws of war.” The government is not releasing official
casualty numbers, so the true number of civilian dead is unknown, but a
prominent Sunni politician recently estimated
that the figure is in the low thousands.
Heavy fighting and bombings were being reported
from west Mosul on Sunday.
At least 80 were killed and three were wounded:
A roadside bomb in Akakouf killed a soldier and wounded two more.
An attack on a highway between Saniya and Haditha left two soldiers dead. Dozens of militants were killed.
A Peshmerga member was killed when a bomb exploded while he was fishing in Tuz.
A policeman was wounded in Melh as he attempted to defuse a bomb.
In Mosul, security forces killed 25 militants in Khur and Tawafa. Another 17 militants were killed in Nablus and Resala. Fourteen were killed in Mosul al-Jadida. An airstrike killed six militant leaders.
A senior militant leader was killed in Baki Quot.
