Relics of over 100 victims, executed by Islamic State, found in mass grave in Mosul

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) A huge mass grave composed of relics of more than 100 victims, executed by Islamic State, has been found, south of Mosul, a security source from Nineveh Operations Command said on Saturday.

“Testimonies of local residents enabled army troops to reach the grave, located at al-Ramdaniyah village in Qayyarah, south of Mosul,” Col. Saleh al-Sherifi told BasNews.

“The grave contained relics of more than 111 victims,” Sherifi added. “The relics had symptoms of shooting at chests and heads.”

“Most of the victims were civil servants from the Nineveh elections commission office and security personnel,” he said.

IS militants, according to Sherifi, executed the victims and buried them at the grave during their control on Mosul, which lasted for three years.

Security troops ran into tens of mass graves at regions recaptured from IS. More than 70 graves, including Yazidis killed by IS, were also found.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi declared in July victory over IS militants who had held the second largest Iraqi city since 2014. More than 25,000 Islamic State militants were killed throughout the campaign. Abadi announced, in December, full liberation of Iraqi lands, declaring end of war against IS members.

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.