U.N.: Over 90,000 displaced in western Iraq

RAMADI, Iraq, April 20 (UPI) -- Over 90,000 refugees have left Anbar province in western Iraq, the United Nations reported Monday.

Fighting between Islamic State forces and Iraqi security personnel in the largest of Iraq's governates forced the dislocation, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said, adding the refugees from the conflict are leaving the city of Ramadi and heading, largely on foot, to the cities of Khaldiya, Fallujah and Baghdad.

Anbar province occupies most of western Iraq, and had a population of about 2 million before the battles began.

"Our top priority is delivering life-saving assistance to people who are fleeing--food, water and shelter are highest on the list of priorities," said Lise Grande, humanitarian coordinator for the United Nations in Iraq. "Seeing people carrying what little they can and rushing for safety is heart-breaking. We are very worried about people's safety. The situation is dramatic and only urgent action can save lives."

The U.N.'s World Food Program and refugee agency began distributing food and other necessities to the evacuees, and the World Health Organization began coordination with the Iraqi ministry of Health.

Fighting in Anbar province has intensified in the past two weeks, as officials started a campaign to eliminate IS forces. IS seized Ramadi's western and northern suburbs last week, and if the city falls it will provide a base of operations to the insurgents to attack other parts of the province, likely displacing additional residents.

Including those fleeing Ramadi, over 2.7 million Iraqis since January 2014 have been refugees, the United Nations said.