ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iraq’s government-backed Shiite militias are involved in ”possibly war crimes” in the country’s Sunni areas, New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Sunday.
The rights watchdog said it had obtained evidence showing that 73 people were killed in the Barwana area in Muqdadiyya, a predominantly Sunni region in Diyala province, by SWAT teams and Shiite militias that are largely sponsored by the Baghdad government.
It cited local residents speaking to HRW about harassment and abuse by Shiite militias, after the forces recaptured the area from the Sunni extremist Islamic State (ISIS).
At least 3,000 people who fled Muqdadiyya in June last year have been prevented from returning, HRW noted.
“Iraqi civilians are being hammered by ISIS and then by pro-government militias in areas they seize from ISIS,” said Joe Stork, HRW’s deputy Middle East and North Africa director. “With the government responding to those they deem terrorists with arbitrary arrests and executions, residents have nowhere to turn for protection,” he added.
HRW urged the Iraqi government to look into the claims and protect civilians.
It said it had also obtained a videotape in which a Shiite militia commander openly threatens residents in Muqdadiyya.
“The day of judgment is coming” Hadi al-Ameri, the Badr Brigades commander and transport minister under the previous administration of Nouri al-Maliki, threatens in the video. Speaking to Muqdadiyya residents, he warns: “We will attack the area until nothing is left. Is my message clear?”
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