Addresses by Ms. Flavia Pansieri, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, at the Interactive Dialogue on the Human Rights Situation in Iraq

25 March 2015

Mr President,
Distinguished Members of the Human Rights Council,
Excellencies,

The human rights violations suffered by the people of Iraq are shockingly widespread and extremely severe. The OHCHR investigation mission that was dispatched to Iraq following this Council's Special Session in September has reported on the most serious international crimes – crimes that this Council has a legal and moral obligation to address.

Violence has dominated Iraq for decades. But according to the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, UNAMI, 2014 was the deadliest year for civilians since the bloodshed of 2006 and 2007. It was marked by particularly horrific attacks and a surge of violence by the so-called ISIL group, which has deliberately committed shocking and serious crimes.

OHCHR's investigation mission for Iraq was established pursuant to this Council's Resolution S-22/1, which requested that OHCHR investigate and document alleged violations and abuses of international human rights law committed by ISIL and associated groups. In line with the High Commissioner’s mandate according to GA resolution 48/141, the mission also verified information received regarding violations of international humanitarian and human rights law perpetrated by other parties to the conflict, and its report, which has been presented to you, also documents those allegations.

Violations by ISIL

The report details a shocking range of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights perpetrated by ISIL. Information gathered points to the crime of genocide; deliberate and widespread attacks directed against civilian populations suggestive of crimes against humanity; war crimes; and other serious violations of human rights, particularly against women and girls.

ISIL is clearly intent on shattering the rich ethnic and religious diversity of Iraq, and has perpetrated appalling crimes on Christians, Kaka’e, Kurds, Sabea-Mandeans, Shi’a, Turkmen and Yezidis, for no other reason than their religious beliefs or ethnic origin.

Information gathered by the mission strongly suggests that ISIL may have perpetrated the crime of genocide against the Yezidi population, with a manifest pattern of killing, causing serious bodily or mental harm, and forced transfer of children, aimed at destroying the Yezidis as a group.

The mission confirmed reports – which I brought to your attention at the Council's special session – that during ISIL's incursions into Yezidi-populated cities and villages, men and adolescent boys were systematically separated from women and young children and were summarily executed. In some instances, villages were entirely emptied of their Yezidi population.

Yezidi women and girls were taken as spoils of war. They were transferred to multiple locations where they were sold or given as slaves to ISIL fighters. Numerous interviews conducted by the mission with Yezidi women and girls who recently escaped ISIL captivity provided consistent reports of killings; systematic enslavement, selling of women, and rape; forced transfer of women and children; and inhuman and degrading treatment.

The mission heard witness reports of the rape of very young girls who were repeatedly assaulted and then, in some cases, re-sold to others. One escapee reported the brutal rape of a crying six-year old girl, who was then re-sold to another ISIL fighter. Her current whereabouts are unknown. A nine-year old girl kept in the same house was reportedly blindfolded, handcuffed, beaten and repeatedly raped over the course of three days. The suffering of these children is unspeakable. In addition to this sexual violence, physical abuse, and denial of many core rights including to education, these young victims suffer the trauma of being separated from their families with no knowledge of their fate.

The mission report also finds that it is reasonable to conclude that ISIL has forcibly conscripted Yezidi and other children between the age of eight and 18 to participate in the armed conflict in breach of international human rights law, international criminal law, and customary international humanitarian law. Yezidi boys as young as eight have also reported forcible military training and conversion to Islam. Boys also reported that they were forced to watch videos of beheadings several times. When they refused, they were severely beaten.

Other communities have also suffered great violence. Christians suffered forced displacement in conditions of great hardship, and were looted of all their valuables. The mission's interviews with victims and witnesses – which were corroborated by other, reliable sources – showed that attacks were also perpetrated against villages occupied by Turkmen, Shabak and other Shi’a groups. In many cases, ISIL forces surrounded villages, killed any inhabitants who were unable to escape, burned and destroyed houses and businesses, destroyed places of worship, and pillaged private and public properties.

Information gathered by the mission strongly suggests that crimes against humanity have been committed against Christian, Shi’a and Yezidi communities, as part of widespread and systematic attacks directed against them.

The mission also found that ISIL has committed war crimes of murder, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture, outrages upon personal dignity, the passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgement pronounced by a regularly constituted court, directing attacks against the civilian population, directing attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, historic monuments, pillaging a town or place, committing rape, sexual slavery and other forms of sexual violence, conscripting or enlisting children or using them to participate actively in hostilities, ordering the displacement of the civilian population, destroying or seizing the property of an adversary.

People in areas under the de facto control of ISIL have also been subjected to unfair trials and cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments.. ISIL-established courts in Mosul, for example, allegedly sentence people to stoning and amputation. Two men accused of homosexuality were convicted by an ISIL so-called "court" and thrown from the top of a tall building.

In addition, as I reported to you at this Council's Special Session in September, at least 600 male inmates of Badoush Prison near Mosul were summarily executed by ISIL in July, merely because they were members of Shi’a or other religious and ethnic groups, or because they had allegedly worked for the Government. The mission interviewed a number of survivors of that massacre.

In June, up to 1,700 hors du combat members of the Iraqi security forces from Camp Speicher in Salah ad-Din were summarily executed by ISIL. These, too, constitute war crimes. An eyewitness from Tikrit recounted the gory spectacle of hundreds of Speicher soldiers being executed in the city; they were shot dead or beheaded. The witness saw ISIL fighters kicking severed heads around like footballs.

ISIL has carried out numerous politically-motivated attacks, including against Iraqi Sunnis. At least 600 members of the Albu Nimr tribe were killed in six separate incidents. In another incident, a former police officer recounted that ISIL fighters cut the throats of his five-month-old daughter, his five-year-old son and his father, in front of him.

Finally, the destruction of Iraq’s venerable cultural heritage has been broadcast by ISIL for all to see. Its fighters have demolished parts of the ancient cities of Nimrud and Hatra, smashed thousand-year-old artefacts in the Mosul Museum, and have burned countless unique manuscripts in the Mosul library. As the Secretary-General has rightly pointed out, this deliberate attack on the cultural heritage of humanity is a war crime.

Violations by the Iraqi security forces and associated militia

Mr President,

ISIL's offensive through Iraq began with its capture of Fallujah in January 2014; advances through Anbar and the cities of Mosul and Tikrit in June; and an offensive across the Ninewa governorate beginning in August. The Government of Iraq turned to other armed actors alongside the Iraqi Security Forces in order to combat ISIL's advance. Thus the ‘Popular Mobilisation’ volunteers and Shi’a militia moved from their southern heartlands towards ISIL-controlled areas in central and northern Iraq. As the report of the investigation mission states, they seemed "to operate with total impunity, leaving a trail of death and destruction in their wake."

In Iraq, the distinctions between State security forces, the so-called ‘Popular Mobilisation’ volunteers, and pro-Government militia have become increasingly blurred. The mission cites allegations that militia members often lead military operations, and may enjoy de facto command over elements of the Iraqi security forces. It also gathered reports, from multiple credible sources, that violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, including war crimes, extrajudicial killings, torture, abductions and forcible displacement of large numbers of people, have been committed by the ISF and associated armed groups.

While more information is needed on the link between the militia and the Government, incidents point, at the very least, to a failure on part of the Government to protect persons under its jurisdiction. It is the responsibility of the Government of Iraq to bring all armed forces and groups fighting on its behalf under its control. Professional training of these forces and a clear chain of command must be established, and members of these forces must be held accountable for violations.

Pro-Government militia engaged in operations in Diyala and Salah-ad Din provinces between June and August 2014 that resulted in the mass uprooting of Sunni communities. Displaced Sunnis recounted widespread looting of property and burning and destruction of homes.

In August and September 2014, as ISF and affiliated militia groups moved against ISIL in Yathrib, Salah ad-Din governorate, witnesses provided consistent reports that Sunni men from the area were systematically arrested. Many said that they were tortured at the al-Bakr or Balad airbase in Salah ad-Din governorate, where the mission reports that torture appears to be routine.

In addition, the mission received a number of reports alleging indiscriminate attacks against civilians, including airstrikes. The mission was unable to determine their intended targets, but found that several attacks caused civilian death and injury, raising the possibility of a lack of precautionary measures to protect civilians. Numerous other incidents reported by reliable sources could not be independently verified by the mission and require further investigation. For instance, the use of barrel bombs by ISF was widely alleged. Use of this highly inaccurate weapon in residential areas almost certainly would constitute an indiscriminate attack.

Displacement

I am dismayed to learn that many Iraqis fleeing violence and persecution have been prevented from reaching safe locations. In November, members of the Sunni community leaving villages that had been taken over by ISIL were allegedly blocked at Maktab Khalid checkpoint, the main entry for those seeking safety in Kirkuk city or the Kurdistan Region blocked by Peshmerga forces under the authority of the Kurdistan Regional Government. These displaced families waited at the checkpoint for days, sleeping in the street in the bitter cold, and several children died of exposure. Reportedly, the Governor of Suleimaniyah governorate personally intervened to facilitate access to secure locations for these families, and I commend him for this.

Three million Iraqis have been displaced from their homes, two million in the course of 2014. They all have the right to return to their homes, and to live in safety and dignity. I urge the authorities to do all that it can to ensure that people who have been displaced have access to essential services and fundamental rights, and that non-discriminatory procedures are established to permit access to safe zones.

Technical cooperation

Despite the difficult security situation, UNAMI and OHCHR continue to conduct activities in all governorates of Iraq. Even in areas of the country affected by conflict and violence, networks have been established to monitor the human rights situation. The focus of our work includes protection of civilians in armed conflict; building strong, independent State institutions that can become the cornerstone of a human rights protection system for Iraq; comprehensive reform of the criminal justice and security sectors; and ensuring protection for ‘at risk’ or marginalised groups, while promoting their participation in the political, economic and social life of the country.

Conclusion

Mr President,

The violations committed by ISIL are extremely severe, and the people who remain in zones under ISIL control suffer horrors that are painful even to contemplate. However, I am also bound to report that although the new Government has taken some steps to restore confidence among Iraq's communities, this cannot mask the fact that its forces and allies continue to violate the human rights of the people of its country. These violations nurture resentment and feed into a relentless cycle of violence.

Currently, the ISF, ‘Popular Mobilisation’ volunteers and affiliated militia continue their military operations against ISIL, most recently around Tikrit and Kirkuk. It has been reported that plans are afoot to retake the city of Mosul. Precautionary measures must be taken to protect civilian life and property.

The members of OHCHR's investigation mission have expressed their admiration for the witnesses and victims who have spoken out, despite trauma and in some cases at considerable risk to their personal safety and security, in order to be certain that these violations are documented, so that the perpetrators can be brought to justice. We owe it to these women, men and children to follow through with real action.

The primary legal responsibility to address the international crimes documented in the report lies with the State of Iraq, whose duty it is to protect persons under its jurisdiction and ensure accountability. However, the international community cannot also shirk its responsibility to help bring violations to an end and to ensure that new ones are not committed. I ask this Council to urge the Government of Iraq to investigate all crimes, in line with international human rights standards and to ensure that it maintains a focus on the dire human rights situation in the country. The findings of these investigations should be made public, and perpetrators brought to justice. The Government should also engage in an inclusive and meaningful dialogue that can voice the legitimate interests and grievances of all Iraqis.

The disregard for human life and total impunity for gross violations of human rights that are documented in the mission's report indicate a bleak outlook for the future of the country. The window is closing fast to pull Iraq back from the brink of chaos. One step in that direction is to signal clearly to all those responsible for violations of international humanitarian and human rights law that they will be held accountable and to ensure that this takes place.

The High Commissioner has repeatedly counselled Iraq to become party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and to ensure that the international crimes defined in the Rome Statute are criminalised under Iraq’s domestic law. This will send a clear signal that violations of international humanitarian and human rights law will not go unpunished.

Victims of the international crimes documented in this report, particularly survivors of sexual abuse and sexual slavery, should receive support, including psychological and medical care. I repeat the High Commissioner’s call for the Human Rights Council to recommend to the Security Council referral of the situation to the International Criminal Court.

Thank you.