The atrocities against civilians that coincided with London's attack

The atrocities against civilians that coincided with London's attack
A selection of news stories from across the Muslim world that coincided with the London terrorist attack - where civilians were affected in similar ways.
3 min read
23 March, 2017
Baghdad has been rocked by terrorist attacks in the past few days [AFP]

As London reels from the shock of another sickening terrorist attack, the rest of the world has extended their condolences and messages of solidarity to the British people.

Five people were killed and 40 more injured by an attacker outside Parliament and the surrounding area in Westminster.

While this attack was continuing, other atrocities of a similar and horrific nature were also happening on Wednesday.

This is a selection of news stories that occurred from across the Muslim-majority world on Wednesday.

Somalia

25 people were confirmed to have starved to death in Somaliland on Wednesday, after another 26 people were reported to have died in Puntland on Tuesday.

According to the United Nations, there are more than 50,000 children who face death by starvation as a result of the country's on-going drought.

More than half the population of Somalia – 6.2 million people – need humanitarian assistance and protection, including 2.9 million at risk of famine.

Hama, Syria

Around 10,000 people fled a massive outbreak of fighting in Syria's fourth-largest city, Hama, after a group of Syrian rebels launched a massive attack on the town.

Islamist fighters, supported by suicide vehicle attacks, attacked regime forces in the villages and towns surrounding Hama.

There were also two fresh attacks by rebel fighters in the Syrian capital, Damascus - causing civilians to flee a fresh bout of fighting.

Abu Ghraib, Iraq

One person was killed and five others were wounded after an improvised bomb exploded in a civilian area in Abu Ghraib, Iraq.

There has been a large spate of car-bombs in Baghdad and its surrounding areas in recent months, as IS is largely defeated in the north of Iraq.

On Monday, 27 people were killed and around 45 people injured after teh car-bomb hit a predominantly Shia area of the city.

Raqqa, Syria

US-led coalition airstrikes killed 58 people in 24 hours in the area surrounding Raqqa in northern Syria.

The first air-strike hit a refugee centre close to the Islamic State group-held town of al-Mansoura, killing 33 people on Wednesday.

Another 25 people were killed in the neighbouring town of al-Tabqa later the same day. Continued coalition airstrikes have had a heavy human cost recently, as ground forces prepare for to take Raqqa from IS.

Balochistan, Pakistan

A grenade was thrown at a girls' school in the Balochistan region - bordering Afghanistan - on Wednesday morning.

The incident was the first of its kind in recent history and took place in the Killi Pir Alizai neighbourhood of Killa Abdullah.

No injuries or deaths were recorded.

"Fortunately, the girls were inside their classes at the time of attack," Zamarak Achakzai, the parliamentary leader of Awami National Party (ANP) said.

Sinjar, Iraq

Three Peshmerga fighters were wounded after a number of unidentified gunmen opened fire on their patrol vehicle in Sinjar, west Iraq.

Hakar Amedi, a Peshmerga commander in the city, told Rudaw the incident took place near the local market at around 14:50 GMT.

A large number of villages in the local region are still held by Islamic State (IS) in the local region - a majority Yazidi area.

There has also been an escalation in violence between Kurdish groups loyal to Baghdad and those loyal to Erbil for at least three weeks.