Violence killed, injured more than 21,000 Iraqis in 2015: UN

Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Iraq, Fadel Ghraoui, says more than 21,000 Iraqis have either lost their lives or sustained injuries due to acts of violence and terrorism in the embattled Arab country since the beginning of the current year.

Ghraoui, in a statement released on Thursday, pointed to the dramatic rise in the number of Daesh operations against Iraqi people, noting that a total of 6,238 Iraqis have been killed and another 14,933 injured between January 1 and October 1, 2015.

The senior UN official added that while the number of killed Iraqi people stood at 12,282 the previous year, the number of those injured hit 23,126, making the year 2014 the bloodiest year for Iraqis.

Ghraoui added that violence also claimed the lives of 8,645 Iraqis in 2013, leaving 23,460 others injured.

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq says a total of 1,325 Iraqis were killed and another 1,811 wounded in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in August alone.

According to the UN mission, the number of civilian fatalities stood at 585. Violence also claimed the lives of 740 members of the Iraqi security forces. A great portion of the fatalities was recorded in Baghdad, where 318 civilians were killed.

The northern and western parts of Iraq have been plagued by violence ever since Daesh Takfiri militants began their march through the Iraqi territory in June 2014.

Army soldiers and Popular Mobilization units have joined forces and are seeking to take back militant-held regions in joint operations.