HRW urges investigation into Kirkuk airstrike

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for an investigation into a recent airstrike that targeted a Shia congregation in Iraq’s province of Kirkuk, which claimed the lives of over a dozen civilians.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for an investigation into a recent airstrike that targeted a Shia congregation in Iraq’s province of Kirkuk, which claimed the lives of over a dozen civilians.

On October 21, 2016, at least 15 women lost their lives and scores of other civilians sustained injuries in an attack on a mourning procession in the town of Daquq in Kirkuk.

“Even in the heat of battle, armed forces should take all feasible precautions to avoid harming civilians,” Lama Fakih, HRW’s deputy Middle East director, said Monday.

HRW quoted residents as saying that the attack was an airstrike, noting that there were no apparent military targets in the vicinity.