Isis rebels 'hunt opponents', say refugees

Isis rebels have been methodically hunting down non-Sunnis and those opposed to the militants, refugees from the rebel-held towns have told the BBC.

Isis demanded officials and soldiers pledge allegiance to the caliphate they recently declared or face execution.

More than one million Iraqis have fled their homes over the month as Isis seized Mosul, Tikrit and other cities in the north-west.

At least 2,461 people were killed in June, the UN and Iraqi officials say.

The refugees in the Kurdish-controlled town of Sinjar, near Tal Afar, told the BBC's Quentin Sommerville that towns and villages they had fled were now being systematically cleared by Isis (the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant).

Many of the displaced are Shias, Christians and ethnic Kurds.

"For Shias, if they cannot be exchanged for prisoners, [the Isis rebels] would simply cut off their heads," said Hassan, a Kurd who had spent 16 days in captivity until his family paid £30,000 ($51,500) for his release.

Bashar al-Khiki, provincial leader who fled Mosul, said that the jihadists were "collecting information about people and compiling a database in order to identify those who work for the government or security forces."

"If they don't repent and pledge their allegiance to the caliphate, they will be killed. A lot of these people have disappeared in Mosul," he added.