SHINGAL, Kurdistan Region – The mass crimes against the Yezidis in Shingal last year by the Islamic State (ISIS) can only be described as “genocide,” Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said.
Speaking to a group of Yezidis on Mount Shingal on Monday, Barzani said his government would spare no effort to secure international recognition for the atrocities committed against the Yezidis in Shingal.
“We have already formed a governmental committee which consists of two ministers and a number of eyewitnesses, who will do whatever is in their power to formally recognize the atrocities in Shingal as genocide,” Barzani said on Mount Shingal, which was recaptured from ISIS in a December offensive.
Barzani said a governmental group would visit Shingal in the coming days to assess damages and reconstruct the area, after fierce clashes that left parts of the city in ruins.
“We will do what we can to help the people and the city,” he promised.
Kurdish Peshmerga forces supported by US-led airpower pushed back the Sunni extremists from much of the areas they had lost to ISIS last year, including the besieged Shingal Mountain. That was the scene of an intense international humanitarian effort in August for fleeing Yezidi families from the militant jihadists.
Kurdish army sources say parts of Shingal are still in ISIS hands.
“All public services will return to Shingal after we have liberated the city completely,” Barzani vowed.
.webp&w=3840&q=75)
