ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The EU delegation to Iraq on Sunday urged authorities in Baghdad and Erbil to put the Sinjar Agreement into action to facilitate the return of displaced Yazidis, while also demanding justice and accountability for the crimes committed by the Islamic State (ISIS), in a statement marking the 11th anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide.

 

On August 3, 2014, ISIS militants took control of Sinjar, the heartland of the Yazidi community, launching a brutal campaign involving killings, abductions, genocidal rape, and forced conversions of the ethnoreligious minority.

 

The EU, in a statement on Sunday, urged “the Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government [KRG] to proceed with the implementation of the Sinjar Agreement, as this would improve living conditions in Sinjar and allow Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from the Yazidi community to return.”

 

In October 2020, Erbil and Baghdad signed the Sinjar Agreement, which aimed to restore stability in the Yazidi homeland.

 

The agreement stipulated that the federal government would oversee security operations in Sinjar in partnership with the KRG, while local authorities in Nineveh would be responsible for public services. It also called for the removal of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) elements and other armed groups from the district, handing control over to the federal army and police. However, nearly five years after signing, the agreement remains unimplemented.

 

Over 5,000 Yazidis were killed during ISIS’s campaign, and more than 6,000 others, mostly women and children, were abducted and sold into sexual slavery. Many abducted Yazidis are still missing.

 

“The day is also a strong reminder of the importance of accountability for crimes committed by Da’esh [ISIS] against all victims of their terror,” the EU emphasized. “Victims and survivors deserve justice, including the Yazidi community."

 

“We welcome all actions, by the Iraqi authorities and international efforts, to support this accountability.”

 

At least 18 countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, and Switzerland, have officially recognized ISIS' crimes against the Yazidi community as genocide. The KRG described the recognition as a “significant milestone in the pursuit of justice and accountability for the crimes committed against the Yazidi community.”

 

According to Dindar Zebari, Coordinator for International Advocacy at the KRG, the Kurdish government has documented 42,000 files containing 408,540 pages of digital records detailing ISIS crimes.