(Photo : REUTERS/Rodi Said)


A humanitarian crisis continues to develop on a mountain in northern Iraq with thousands of people facing the threat of genocide from the Islamic state forces.



Nearly 30,000 members of minority groups, including Yazidis and Christians, are trapped in a mountain and are facing life threats from the Islamic insurgents.



Like Us on Facebook


In an interview with U.N. refugee agency spokesman Adrian Edwards, he said there were about 20,000-30,000 people still trapped on Mount Sinjar.



Another U.N. minority rights expert, Rita Izsak, said that it is not unlikely that genocide will take place soon.



"[The people are facing] a mass brutality and potential genocide within days or hours," Izsak said.



The United States has deployed over 130 military strategists to Iraq to evaluate the extent of the crisis happening in the northern part of the country, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said.



Additional personnel, including Marines and special operations forces, were also deployed in Iraq to help the country's combat forces and provide assistance for the embattled country.



Other countries like Australia and Britain have also announced their support regarding the humanitarian airdrops and have not discounted the possibility of sending combat troops to help Iraq.



Meanwhile, on Tuesday, a chopper carrying humanitarian aid crashed along with the pilot and Yazidi member Vian Dakhil.



Alissa J. Rubin of the New York Times was also hurt in the crash, according to the paper.



In a statement released by the U.S. Central Command in Florida, 180 bundles of provisions were air dropped by the U.S. military on Mount Sinjar on Tuesday.



All in all, about 100,000 bundles of food and 27,000 gallons of drinking water have been air dropped to the trapped minority group by the U.S. military forces in cooperation with the Iraqi government.



The Obama administration implored appointed Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to create a new cabinet with members who represent different ethnic groups and religions to bring unity to Iraq.



Besides the United States, other countries have further expressed their support to Iraq and pledged additional firepower to the Iraqi military forces that are fighting the insurgents.




TagsIraq, jihadist, genocide