LOC19:47
16:47 GMT
BERLIN, Nov 21 (KUNA) -- Germany urged Iraq Monday to abide by its pledges and prevent displacement of Sunni Arabs and other minorities in the northern city of Mosul, after its liberation from so-called Islamic State (IS).
"The Iraqi government should abide by its pledges and not to displace Sunni Arabs and other minorities in Mosul after regaining the city from Daesh," German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in brief press statements with his Iraqi counterpart Ibrahim Jaafari before their meeting, said referring to IS with its Arabic acronym.
"All depends now on the Iraqi government's compliance with the agreements that call for banning Shiite militias and Kurdish Peshmerga forces from displacing Sunni Arabs from Mosul," he added.
Germany, said Steinmeier, was committed to providing assistance to Iraq to provide shelter and services for the people displaced from liberated areas.
Jaafari, for his part, said the Iraqi army has been making great progress against IS in Mosul, but warned against announcing the complete victory.
"Despite the rapid pace of the first phase of the operation to liberate Mosul, we should not expect this battle to be in the same pace in the weeks to come because the IS militants will do all they could to prevent the liberation of Mosul, and will not hesitate to use civilians as human shields," he said.
International organizaitons, including Amnesty International, have claimed that the Popular Mobilization Forces of displacing the Sunni Arabs around Mosul, while Peshmerga were destroying Sunni villages in Nineveh and Kirkuk.
Steinmeier and Jaafari are expected to discuss fighting terrorism in general and IS in particular. (end)
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