ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The Iraqi government has uncovered more than 300 mass graves in the country throughout the years, in coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), an Iraqi official said Wednesday.

“So far, more than 316 mass graves have been exhumed, and the process of exhuming mass graves continues, but the major obstacle is the increase in mass graves from the Al-Qaeda and ISIS eras,” Zaidan Khalaf, advisor for human rights affairs to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, told The New Region at the fifth international scientific conference on the genocide of the Kurdish people in Duhok.

“In this regard, we have high-level coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government, and we hope that in the coming years, the necessary budget will be increased to compensate the victims and their families, including the people of Sinjar,” he added.

Official data estimates there are at least 700 mass graves in Iraq, with each one containing from five to more than 100 bodies. Victims of the Islamic State (ISIS) alone number around 12,000 buried in mass graves, according to the UN.

According to data from the Petrichor Human Rights Organization, 95 mass graves have so far been located in Sinjar, of which 68 have already been exhumed, resulting in the recovery of around 850 bodies, of which only 96 have been identified.

In August 2014, ISIS militants seized control of the Yazidi heartland of Sinjar, launching a brutal campaign of killings, abductions, sexual assault, and forced conversions of members of the minority group.

More than 5,000 Yazidis were killed in the ISIS campaign, and over 6,000 others, mostly women and children, were abducted and sold into sex slavery.

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 a genocide.

Khalaf said the people of Sinjar have been granted the right to reclaim their lands and 50 projects have been implemented for its rehabilitation, half of which are completed. The projects include education, health, and reconstruction.

Over eight years after ISIS’ territorial defeat and five years after Erbil and Baghdad signed an agreement to restore stability to Sinjar, tens of thousands of Yazidis are unwilling to return to their homes due to security concerns exacerbated by a lack of services and reconstruction.