Iraq says no accurate information on fate of 39 missing Indians in Mosul

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi Foreign Minister has said his government does not have information about fate of 39 Indians who have disappeared in Mosul since June 2014.

Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, who arrived in India on an official visit, was quoted by India’s Hindustan Times on Monday as saying that Iraqi authorities do not have information if these missing Indians are still alive or not. However, he added that Baghdad government will make its best in search for the Indian workers.

The missing workers issue is likely to be included within talks between Jaafari and his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj, the newspaper reported.

Earlier this month, Swaraj indicated recent information that showed the missing nationals were held at Badush prison, near Mosul, where many prisoners were killed by the Islamic State militants.

A group of 39 out of 40 Indians were kidnapped at the vicinity of Mosul by militants, believed to be affiliated to IS. The only survivor told reporters that the abducted ones were executed in the desert region near Badush on June 15th, 2014. However, the Indian government refused to believe his testimony.

Earlier this month, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi congratulated Iraqi forces and citizens on the victory over IS militants who had held the second largest Iraqi city since 2014. More than 25000 militants were killed throughout the campaign.

Violence in the country has surged further with the emergence of Islamic State Sunni extremist militants who proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in 2014.