On Monday, a commemoration marking the eleventh anniversary of the genocide of the Yazidis was prevented by security forces on Tahrir Square in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. Several civil society organizations gathered to commemorate the victims of the genocide perpetrated by ISIS starting on August 3, 2014, in the Yazidi main settlement area of Shengal.
Security forces intervened in the peaceful gathering, verbally abused individual activists, and accused them of “causing unrest.”
Activist Dinya Taê strongly criticized the authorities’ response. “To this day, the Iraqi state has not officially recognized the events in Shengal as genocide. Our action was an appeal to the conscience in Iraq and around the world. We are one people, we are one whole,” she stated.
The activist said it was unacceptable that peaceful commemorations were being criminalized as potential disturbances.
Writer Subhî Bedrî recalled that Iraqi government agencies had remained silent during the attack on Shengal in 2014. “The responsibility for dealing with this tragedy lies not only with politicians, but also with the media, society, and all civil institutions.”
Civil rights activist Bushra Abu Issa called on the Iraqi government to formally recognize the Shengal genocide and to consistently implement the law already passed to protect Yazidi survivors. She emphasized the need for support measures for the Yazidi community and the reconstruction of Shengal.
Ahmed Star expressed astonishment at the actions of the security forces,saying: “Our intention was clear; we wanted to commemorate the victims. It is incomprehensible that this was interpreted as chaos.”