ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdish MPs in the Iraqi parliament want Shingal declared a “ruined city,” a designation that would allow urgent reconstruction funds to rebuild the Yezidi Kurdish town that was devastated by the Islamic State (ISIS). “In the same way that the Iraqi parliament voted on declaring Anbar a ruined province, they should vote for Shingal as well,” said Vian Dakhil, an MP who is a Yezidi Kurd. “Several MPs have asked the head of the parliament to add Shingal to the ruined cities in Iraq but he has not responded,” Dakhil added. She said that signatures and evidence will be collected and given to parliament, in order to push for a vote on Shingal. ISIS attacked the predominantly Kurdish Yezidi town of Shingal in August 2014, triggering a grim humanitarian crisis as thousands of locals fled to the safety of nearby Mount Shingal where they were trapped for weeks. The militants unleashed a spree of violence, murdering the men and raping or kidnapping women or girls, many later sold as sex slaves. On November 12, 2015 vowing that “no other flag will rise in (Shingal),” Kurdistan region President Masoud Barzani declared the town liberated from ISIS, and congratulated Yezidi Kurds on the victory. On Saturday, Iraq’s parliament called on authorities to dedicate a special budget for the urgent reconstruction of Anbar, calling it “a ruined province” after it was recaptured from ISIS militants last month.
