Overnight the Islamic State (IS) group captured a major centre for the Christian minority, Qaraqosh in Nineveh province, after the withdrawal of Kurdish forces.

A majority of Nineveh inhabitants left their homes overnight, according to an international Christian organisation based in Paris. As many as 100,000 people are believed to be fleeing toward the autonomous Kurdistan Region.

The BBC reports Pope Francis has made an impassioned appeal to the international community to do much more to address the crisis. A Vatican statement said the Pope appealed for “all necessary help” to be given to those forced to flee their homes, “whose fate depends entirely on the solidarity of others”.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius has called for the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting over the situation.