GLOBAL ECONOMY

UN: At least 6,878 civilians killed in Iraq violence in 2016

Associated Press
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Iraq's elite counterterrorism forces inspect defenses after regaining control of the Quds neighborhood of Mosul, Iraq, Monday, Jan. 2, 2017. (AP Photo/ Khalid Mohammed) (The Associated Press)

Soldiers of Iraq's elite counterterrorism forces help an elderly woman as she and her family flee fighting between Iraqi security forces against Islamic State militants, in Mosul, Iraq, Monday, Jan. 2, 2017. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed) (The Associated Press)

The United Nations says violence claimed the lives of at least 6,878 civilian Iraqis last year.

The U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq, known as UNAMI, said in a statement late Monday that 12,388 other civilians were wounded in 2016. UNAMI added that the figurers didn't include casualties among civilians in Iraq's western Anbar province for the months of May, July, August and December.

The U.N. says its numbers "have to be considered as the absolute minimum" as it has not been able to verify casualties among civilians in conflict areas, and of those who lost their lives due to "secondary effects of violence ... due to exposure to the elements, lack of water, food, medicines and health care."

According to UNAMI figures, at least 7,515 civilians were killed in 2015.