UN Security Council renews mandate of mission for Iraq

 The UN Security Council on Wednesday extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) for another year in a unanimously adopted resolution.

In the resolution, the 15-nation Council expressed grave concern at the current security situation in Iraq as a result of a large-scale of offensive carried out by terrorist groups, in particular the Islamic State (IS), and decided to renew the mandate of the mission until July 31, 2016.

While noting that the presence of IS on Iraq's sovereign territory is a major threat to Iraq's future, the council underscored that the only way to address this threat is for all Iraqis to work together by addressing needs in the security as well as the political realm.

The Council also recognized that "security of United Nations personnel is essential for UNAMI to carry out its work for the benefit of the people of Iraq," and said it will review the mandate of the mission in 12 months or sooner.

The security situation in Iraq has drastically deteriorated since June 2014 when bloody clashes broke out between security forces and IS militants. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported last week that the number of Iraqis internally displaced by the conflict is now over 3.1 million people.

UN Assistance Mission for Iraq reported earlier this month that, from Jan. 1, 2014 through to the end of April 2015, at least 14, 947 civilians were killed and 29,189 were wounded in the armed conflict across the country.