, and flee of more than a million Iraqis who are leaving their homes because of the fighting, calling for what he called the parties to the conflict to stop violence against civilians.

According to a statement issued by the UN received by “Shafaq News", that “ the Secretary-General called on all parties to the conflict to ensure the immediate cessation of the persecution of civilians based on their religion or ethnicity”.

The statement quoted Ban as saying that all parties of the conflict, whether armed groups or the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) organization , local militias or Iraqi security forces has a legal obligation and a moral responsibility to do everything in its power to avoid and prevent violence against civilians and ensure their access to humanitarian needs.

The statement added that the Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the continuing reports of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Iraq, including the execution of soldiers, prisoners and detainees without trial and the indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas, and the abduction and killing of individuals from ethnic and religious communities.

The statement added that the Secretary-General urged the Government of Iraq to hold accountable any members of the Iraqi security forces or local militias from those who may have committed violations to international humanitarian law or human rights.

The statement noted that the Secretary-General praised the work of the United Nations Assistance Mission to help Iraq (UNAMI), as it continues to do its utmost to help resolve the current conflict in Iraq by monitoring and reporting on human rights violations and support local and international partners in the field of international humanitarian assistance to the needy.