The following article was originally published in Rudaw on August 1, 2016.
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has appealed to the diplomatic and international aid communities for assistance in bringing the case of the genocide of the Yezidi people to an international court.
“The Shingal massacre has two aspects that are political and legal. Politically, there have been good achievements in gaining support for Shingal from countries, and now we are working on the legal aspect,” a political advisor to the Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani told Rudaw.
Hussein Qasim added that, “The European Parliament, US congress, British House of Commons and Amnesty International have each acknowledged that what was done to the Yezidis in Shingal is genocide. So, we are working on this case through the international court. And our meetings with foreign representatives are to acquire legal support.”
He also accused the Baghdad government of failing to help the KRG on an international level to seek recognition of the Yezidi genocide committed by the Islamic State. Prime Minister Barzani has sent “a message to Abadi about this question to assist [the KRG], but he has not replied yet,” Qasim said.
“Iraq does not help with the recognition of the Shingal genocide,” he added.
Qasim made the comments at a special session of the KRG High Committee for the recognition of crimes committed against Yezidi Kurds and other ethnic and religious minorities. The meeting, hosted by the Department of Foreign Relations, was attended by international diplomats as well as KRG officials.
Falah Mustafa, the foreign relations minister, asked the diplomats and members of international agencies to help the KRG to rebuild the city of Shingal, including building a rehabilitation centre in the Yezidi city.
On April 28, the Iraqi parliament declared Shingal a ruined city, leading to hopes that a special budget would be dedicated for the city’s reconstruction so that residents can return home.
With 80 percent of the city destroyed, however, and no water or electricity, only a few determined residents have returned to Shingal so far.
The Consul General of Palestine, Nazmi Hazouri, who acts as the dean of the diplomats, thanked the KRG for their efforts to document the crimes of the Islamic State.
“During the session, several diplomats and representatives spoke highly of the resilience of the people of Kurdistan Region, in particular the people of Shingal and expressed their support for KRG’s efforts to secure justice for the victims and the survivors of the ISIS crimes,” reads a statement issued by the foreign relations ministry.
Read the above article on Rudaw here.
