Approximately 46,000 people have died fighting Daesh in Iraq since last year: NGO

Published June 10th, 2015 - 11:00 GMT
Iraqi forces backed by Shia militia and US-led airstrikes have been struggling to purge the country of Daesh. (AFP/File)
Iraqi forces backed by Shia militia and US-led airstrikes have been struggling to purge the country of Daesh. (AFP/File)

Around 46,000 people have been killed in Iraq fighting the Daesh militant group over the last year, a local NGO said this week.

According to Hashd, an NGO that documents cases of genocide, the casualties include 40,000 government troops, 3,000 members of the Al-Hashd al-Shaabi Shia militia, and 3,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and Sunni tribesmen.

The last year has seen frequent clashes between Iraqi forces – backed by Al-Hashd al-Shaabi militiamen and Peshmerga forces – and the Daesh militant group in the Iraqi provinces of Nineveh, Kirkuk, Saladin and Anbar.

Although Daesh recently lost several areas of Diyala, Nineveh and Saladin, it remains in control of most of Anbar province.

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