“Within hours the lives of countless men, women and children were devastated in Tuz Khurmatu,” said Lynn Maalouf, Director of Research for the Middle East at Amnesty International, on Tuesday. “Thousands have lost their homes, shops and everything they owned. They are now scattered in nearby camps, villages and cities, wondering whether they will ever be able to return.”
Residents reported that civilians “were unable to determine whether the attacks were attributable to Kurdish or Iraqi government forces,” but hundreds of properties were looted, destroyed and set on fire in predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods.
Amnesty noted testimony of “indiscriminate fire launched into crowds of Kurdish residents fleeing the city.”
“The Iraqi authorities already stated they would not tolerate any attacks against civilians, and would hold perpetrators accountable,” Maalouf said. “They must now put word to action, and promptly initiate impartial investigations into these violations. Victims must receive full reparation and those responsible held to account.”
Amnesty based their findings on interviews with 42 displaced residents, satellite imagery, and authenticated videos and photos which showed damage to homes and other properties. Some of the residents also reported clashes between Kurds and Shiite Turkmen.
The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) informed Amnesty that nearly 35,000 civilians have fled Tuz Khurmatu since October 16. Many civilians interviewed said they fled between 2 am and 6 am due to the fighting as the Iraqi and Hashd al-Shaabi forces began their takeover of the town.
The civilians who were interviewed by Amnesty are now taking refuge in nearby villages, cities and camps. None of them felt it was safe enough to return home.
“Humanitarian support for the tens of thousands of people who have fled Tuz Khurmatu must be earmarked and provided as a matter of urgency, both by the international community and the Iraqi government,” Maalouf said. “It is also essential that the authorities swiftly restore security and the rule of law and establish conditions conducive to the safe, voluntary and sustainable return of tens of thousands of displaced residents.”
Iraq’s minister for displaced persons, Darbaz Mohammed, on Saturday described the situation in the multi-ethnic town of Tuz Khurmatu as “out of control” and unsafe for Kurdish residents to return to at this time.
Iraqi forces and Iran-backed Hashd al-Shaabi took control of Tuz Khurmatu, 65 kilometers south of Kirkuk, from the Peshmerga on October 16.
Kirkuk and Tuz Khurmatu, like the rest of the disputed or Kurdistani areas claimed by both Erbil and Baghdad, joined the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum that saw an overwhelming 92.7 percent of people choosing to leave Iraq.
Baghdad opposed the vote, especially in the disputed areas.
The Amnesty report builds on claims by government officials, a UN statement on reports of the torching of 150 houses by armed groups, and a Human Rights Watch report of five civilians killed and 51 wounded.
“The situation remains volatile, and many people are returning to their homes only to flee for a second or third time when hostilities erupt again,” said Lise Grande, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for Iraq, on Saturday.
Kurdish officials also said on Saturday that as many as 168,000 people total have fled the violence in the disputed or Kurdistani areas claimed by Baghdad and Erbil.
The Peshmerga and Hashd al-Shaabi have clashed several times in multi-ethnic Tuz Khurmatu. In April 2016, both parties reached an agreement to withdraw their military forces from urban areas.
