Military operations aimed at retaking the Iraqi city of Tikrit from the so-called Islamic State jihadist group have caused around 28,000 people to flee their homes, the United Nations said on Thursday.
"Military operations in and around Tikrit have precipitated displacement of an estimated 28,000 people to Samarra," a UN statement said, the Daily Mail reported.
"Field reports indicate that additional displacements are underway and that yet more families remain stuck at checkpoints," it said.
Some 30,000 Iraqi security forces members and allied fighters launched an operation to retake Tikrit on Monday, the largest of its kind since so-called Islamic State group forces overran swathes of territory last June.