UNSC decries deadly terror attacks in Iraq, urges punishment of sponsors

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has condemned in the strongest terms the recent deadly terrorist attacks in Iraq, calling for international cooperation to bring to account the perpetrators and financiers of such crimes.

In a press release issued on Wednesday, the 15-member body expressed its deepest sympathy and condolences to the Iraqi government and the families of the victims of the attacks, wishing a speedy recovery to the injured. 

On Tuesday, a motorbike rigged with explosives killed four people and wounded at least 20 others in Iraq’s southern city of Basra. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Iraqi authorities said the blast carries fingerprints of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

Bomb explosion leaves dozen dead, several wounded in Iraq’s Basra

At least a dozen people are reportedly killed and many more injured when a massive explosion ripped through Iraq’s southern city of Basra.

On Friday, an attack on a village in Iraq’s northern semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region killed three residents and 10 Peshmerga forces. Daesh claimed responsibility for the raid in a statement posted on an affiliated Telegram account.

The UNSC “underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice, and urged all states … to cooperate actively with the government of Iraq and all other relevant authorities in this regard.”

It also “reiterated that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed.”

The UN body reaffirmed the need for all countries “to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and other obligations under international law, including international human rights law, international refugee law and international humanitarian law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts.”

The Security Council further voiced support for Iraq’s security and the continued fight against terror outfits such as Daesh, stressing that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security.

Daesh began a terror campaign in Iraq in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks.

The Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) or Hashd al-Sha’abi played a major role in reinforcing the Iraqi army, which had suffered heavy setbacks against the Takfiri elements.

Iraq declared victory over Daesh in December 2017 after a three-year counter-terrorism military campaign, which also had the support of neighboring Iran.

The terror outfit’s remnants, though, keep staging sporadic attacks across Iraq, attempting to regroup and unleash fresh violence.

Daesh has intensified its terrorist attacks in Iraq since January 2020, when the United States, which is believed to be a staunch sponsor of the terror group, assassinated top Iranian anti-terror commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani and Hashd al-Sha'abi deputy commander, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, near Baghdad International Airport.

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