Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Iraqi Izadis facing attempted genocide at ISIL hands: UN

A high-ranking United Nations official says people from Iraq's Izadi religious minority are facing what may amount to an “attempted genocide” at the hands of the ISIL Takfiri terrorists.
"The evidence strongly indicates attempt to commit genocide," UN Assistant Secretary General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday.
Simonovic added that the atrocities perpetrated by ISIL terrorists over the past four months may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
On Monday, an unnamed Iraqi security source said the ISIL militants are laying siege to about 700 Izadi families on Mount Sinjar.
The source added that the militants are deploying more forces to the area, and are about one kilometer (0.6 mile) away from Sinjar.
Tens of thousands of Izadi refugees took up residence at makeshift sites and villages across the Kurdish region of northern Iraq after fleeing to Mount Sinjar in August.
The United Nations confirms that more than 5,000 Izadi Kurds were gunned down in a series of massacres by the ISIL Takfiri terrorists. Some 4,800 women and children are thought to be held captive, and that the number is expected to rise above 7,000.
Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch said in a report that abducted Izadi women are subjected to sexual assault and are being bought and sold by ISIL militants.
The ISIL terrorists currently control large swathes of territory across Syria and Iraq. They have committed terrible atrocities in both countries, including mass executions and beheading of local residents as well as foreign nationals.

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