Nineveh's Population Swells with Fleeing Homeless

The city's population of 25,000 has grown with the war refugees, and the humanitarian situation is worsening, the Fides news service reported.

Fides said the city authorities in Nineveh, whose population is mostly Christian, have only small stocks of food and medicine. The local people are trying to collect food and other emergency goods for the new arrivals.

Church sources told Fides that the city has no military installations which could be targeted by bombing. But they fear that the Kurdish forces only 30 kilometers (18 miles) away could end up bringing the city into the war, Fides said.

Fides said looting has already been reported in parts of Iraq where police protection has faded.