More than 68,000 people have fled their homes since Iraqi forces launched a huge operation against the Takfiri ISIL group in and around Mosul last month, the UN said Tuesday.

“68,550 people are currently displaced and in need of humanitarian assistance,” the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement.

OCHA said the aid response to the offensive launched against the insurgents on October 17 was growing in complexity, with varying needs for different categories of civilians.

“Humanitarian needs are severe among displaced families in and out of camps, vulnerable residents of retaken communities, and people fleeing the intense fighting in Mosul city,” it said.

The UN had initially predicted that 200,000 civilians could be forced from their homes in the first few weeks of the offensive, Iraq’s biggest military operation in years.

Source: AFP