UN warns of more evacuations amid fighting in Iraq

By Fatih Erel

GENEVA

The UN's humanitarian aid coordinator for Iraq on Tuesday warned of major evacuations due to three possible additional military operations against Daesh-held areas of the country.

The deputy special representative of the United Nations' Assistance Mission for Iraq, Lise Grande, told reporters in Geneva that, after Mosul, the UN expected more operations in Tal Afar, Hawija and Anbar provinces.

"We think that by the end of these military operations, several hundred more people are expected to be displaced," she said.

Grande said almost 956,000 people had been displaced from Mosul during to nine months of fighting. The majority -- almost 711,000 -- remained displaced, even after the fight to push Daesh from the northern city.

In early July, Iraqi forces decisively dislodged Daesh from Mosul, which the terrorist group overran in 2014 along with extensive territories in northern and western Iraq.