The Government of the United Kingdom has recognized as “acts of genocide” the persecution, annihilation and physical and psychological harassment suffered by the Yazidi community by the Islamic State (IS), since militants of the fanatical Muslim movement occupied their residential areas in 2014 “The Yazidi population suffered immensely at the hands of Daesh nine years ago and the repercussions are still being felt. Justice and accountability are important to all those whose lives were destroyed,” said Secretary of State for the Middle East, Tariq Ahmad, when announcing the “historic recognition” of the Yazidi genocide.
The IS persecuted the members of this religious minority, with Kurdish roots and settlements in the Sinja district and the other Iraqi towns near its borders with Syria, Turkey and Iran. The Islamists separated the men from the women and children captured in Iraq. They killed the former while kidnapping, raping and enslaving the rest of the family, according to testimonies from victims.
The British formal declaration coincides with preparations for the ninth anniversary of barbarism, which will be commemorated at public events in Baghdad. “The definition reinforces our commitment to ensure that (Yazidis) receive the compensation due to them and can gain meaningful access to Justice,” added Lord Ahmad, who represents the Conservative government on foreign affairs in the Upper House of Parliament. of Westminster.
The UK requires a judicial ruling before assuming the official designation of genocide. In this case, it bases its ratification on a resolution of the Federal Court of Germany, of January 2023, which validated the ruling against an IS militant issued by the lower court in Frankfurt, some three years earlier.
This regional court sentenced Taha Al-Jumailly to life imprisonment for “acts of genocide and crimes against humanity” perpetrated against a Yazidi woman and her five-year-old daughter. The serious abuses took place in Iraq in 2015.
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