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ISIS militants have reportedly captured 15 pigeon breeders in Diyala, Iraq
Security official claims that three of men - aged 16 to 22 - have been killed
Extremists said to have taken bird breeders as it is 'against Islamic region'

Published: 08:08 GMT, 20 January 2015 | Updated: 08:08 GMT, 20 January 2015

ISIS militants have reportedly captured at least 15 pigeon breeders in Iraq after deciding it is against Islamic religion to keep birds.

Three of those held by the group in the eastern province of Diyala have reportedly been killed, according to a security official.

Abu Abdullah, a farmer, said a total of six gunmen barged into his home earlier this week and dragged away his 21-year-old son.

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ISIS militants have reportedly captured 15 pigeon breeders, and killed three, in the eastern province of Diyala, Iraq, after deciding bird breeding is against Islamic religion before it takes time away from worshipping Allah

Farmer Abu Abdullah said a six gunmen barged into his home earlier this week and dragged away his 21-year-old son. He said they drove his son off in a car after rounding up pigeons in the house and burning them

Mr Abdullah's son is just one of the 15 young men – all aged between 16 and 22 – who have reportedly been captured in the province for breeding birds.

Pigeon breeding is a popular hobby in the region, but it is said to be frowned upon by extremist Islamist fighters because they believe it is a distraction from worshipping Allah.

Mr Abdullah, 52, said he was standing beside his son when ISIS militants stormed the family home and kidnapped his son.

He told NBC News: 'I asked them why and they said: "He is not following the real Islam, he must be punished for being a pigeon breeder. This habit is taking him away from worshiping Allah."

'I begged them again to know where are they taking him, what are they going to do to him. They said he is going to be taken to be judged according to the Islamic Sharia.

'They pushed me, and when my son tried to stop them from pushing me they beat him. Then they put him inside the car and left.'

It comes after ISIS militants bound and blindfolded men before throwing them off the top of a 100ft tower block for 'homosexual crimes'. Shocking video footage showed the men falling to their death in Raqqa, Syria

A masked Islamic fighter used a handheld radio to read aloud the 'crimes' committed by the homosexual men

Video footage then showed the men being pushed off the top of the tower block and falling to their death

He said the militants also scoured the house for pigeons before rounding up the birds, dumping them in bags and burning them.

Mr Abdullah added: 'We are helpless and hopeless. I know they will kill him sooner or later.

'I'm waiting for someone to tell me he was killed, and the only thing I will do is take his body and bury it.'

The news comes after it was revealed that ISIS extremists executed 13 teenage boys for watching the Asian Cup football match between Iraq and Jordan last week.

The young football fans had been caught watching the game on television in the Iraqi city of Mosul, which is controlled by the Islamic State.

The teenagers were rounded up and publicly executed by a firing squad using machine guns, according to anti-ISIS activist group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently.

ISIS now controls large swathes of Syria and Iraq, having taken over a considerable amount since last year

Fighting still raging across key ISIS-held parts of Syria

The small activist group said the teenagers were rounded up by militants in the Al-Yarmouk district of Mosul after 'breaking religious laws' by watching football.

It came just days after ISIS released a video showing two men being thrown off the top of a tower block in Raqqa, Syria, for being gay.

A masked Islamic State fighter announced the charges against the accused using a small handheld radio, before declaring them guilty of engaging in homosexual activities.

He said they should be punished by death, in accordance with Islamic State's radical interpretation of Sharia law.

The men were then bound and blindfolded before being pushed off the 100ft tower block to their death.