Iraq premier orders halt on airstrikes over civilian areas held by ISIS

“I have ordered the Iraqi Air Force to halt shelling of civilian areas even in those towns controlled by ISIS,” Abadi said on his official Twitter account.

The United Nations representative in Iraq, Nickolay Mladenov, welcomed the comments, which were repeated by Abadi at a conference about refugees on Saturday in Baghdad. “Protection of civilians and ensuring their safety and security is a paramount priority for the United Nations,” Mladenov said.

Diplomats and Iraqi politicians from across Iraq’s political spectrum hope Abadi, who formed a cabinet on Monday, can detoxify the political system to form a unified front against ISIS.

Sunni Muslim tribal figures have demanded a freeze on military action on civilian areas as one of the conditions for their support of Abadi’s Shia-led government against the ISIS.

Iraqi authorities have cracked down on Sunni protests over the past two years, using barrel bombs to hit the Islamist fighters who hide among civilians.

Abadi said the order had been issued on Thursday. On the same day, 14 barrel bombs were dropped on Falluja city, killing 22 civilians, a source at a hospital in the city said.

A resident in the ISIS-dominated Ramadi said there had been attacks throughout Friday on villages around the city, killing at least three civilians.