Crowds of mourners paid their respects to a volunteer who was killed delivering aid to earthquake victims. Abubakr Maroufi was driving a vanload of aid to earthquake victims in Sarpol-e Zahab when he died in a car accident. His death has sparked protests by people accusing the Iranian government of failing to help those affected by the earthquake which killed 436 people and injured over 10,000,
Meanwhile, more than 181,000 people who fled their homes as a result of fighting between Iraqi and Kurdish forces in disputed areas in mid-October remain displaced according to the UN. Most of the displaced are from the cities of Kirkuk and Daquq in the province of Kirkuk, and Tuz Khurmatu in Saladin province. However, more than 172,000 people who were displaced have since managed to return home.
Lastly, some good news as Iraqi forces recaptured Rawa, the last town in the country controlled by ISIS. The move, which follows an offensive that began on Saturday, leaves the jihadist group on the verge of complete defeat in Iraq. A few small areas are all that remain under the militants’ control in the country, after the larger town of al-Qaim fell last week.
