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Russian diplomat blasts global media for hushing up Mosul tragedy

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, more than 210,000 people have been displaced from their homes in Mosul during the Iraqi army’s operation to liberate the city
Families flee clashes between Iraqi forces and Islamic State group militants in Mosul  AP Photo/Susannah George
Families flee clashes between Iraqi forces and Islamic State group militants in Mosul
© AP Photo/Susannah George

MOSCOW, March 14. /TASS/. The global media has been carefully hushing up the tragedy of Iraq’s Mosul, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook on Tuesday.

"It seems strange that not a single English-speaking girl suffering in Mosul has yet opened a Twitter account," she commented. "It is strange that every day Christiane Amanpour (CNN’s Chief International Correspondent) fails to ask how many people were killed as a result of the international coalition’s activities in this city. It is strange that nobody mentions the humanitarian catastrophe in Mosul at important press conferences in world capitals, there are neither impressive photos, nor hashtags, nor catchy headlines in leading newspapers and magazines. It is strange that there are no actual numbers, facts and information about refugees, displaced persons and makeshift camps."

"It is also surprising that there have been no demonstrations in front of the coalition members’ embassies, with banners and all. There is nothing," Zakharova stressed. "The global media are going to great lengths to sweep the Mosul tragedy under the rug, taking into account the scale of the disaster."

"It is just another example of the mainstream media’s fake news," the Russian diplomat pointed out.

The campaign to free Iraq’s second largest city was launched on October 17, 2016. Over this period, the country’s authorities have managed to regain control over eastern Mosul and drive the extremists out of some of the western quarters. Islamic State (outlawed in Russia) terrorists were smoked out of the eastern part of the city in late January. On February 19, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi launched an offensive against the western part of Mosul.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, more than 210,000 people have been displaced from their homes in Mosul during the Iraqi army’s operation to liberate the city from the Islamic State militants.