United Nations, June 12 (IANS): The UN Security Council Wednesday strongly deplored an upsurge of terrorist attacks in northern Iraq, including the seize by Islamic insurgents of the country's second largest city of Mosul.
It also condemned the recent terrorist attacks that are being perpetrated against the people of Iraq to destabilise the country and region, Xinhua reported.
"The members of the Security Council deplored in the strongest terms the recent events in the city of Mosul in Iraq where elements of the terrorist organization the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have attacked Iraqi security personnel and civilians, taken over significant parts of the city, including the Turkish Consulate and many government buildings, and displaced hundreds of thousands of people," the UNSC said in a statement.
Mosul, a city in northern Iraq, is the capital of the Nineveh province, some 400 km northwest of Baghdad.
Islamic insurgents seized Iraq's second largest city Tuesday following days of fighting against Iraqi government forces.
As many as 500,000 people have reportedly fled Mosul in the wake of the violence. On Wednesday, terrorists kidnapped the consul general of Turkey and several consulate staff working in the city.