BAGHDAD, Iraq – The Iraqi parliament has voted to recognize ISIS persecution of Iraqi Turkmens as genocide.
The bill passed by the Iraqi parliament on Thursday recognizes the killing of Turkmen prisoners in Tal Afar, west of Mosul, and a 2016 chemical weapon attack on Taza Khurmatu, south of Kirkuk, as genocide.
The recognition comes amidst calls on the Iraqi government to turn its focus to ISIS in Tal Afar as military operations in Mosul wrap up.
Niyazi Mimamr Oglu, a Turkmen MP, introduced the bill.
There were unconfirmed reports earlier this month that ISIS militants killed as many as 200 Turkmens in Tal Afar, some believed to be children.
A prominent Yezidi MP, Vian Dakhil, criticized the bill by the Iraqi parliament in a series of tweets in both Arabic and English.
She called the bill “unprecedented.” Claiming that “all the ISIS leaders are from Tal-Afar,” she said the bill “equalized the victims to the criminals.”
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Parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri meanwhile called on the Iraqi government to complete the liberation of ISIS-held areas, with Tal Afar at the top of the agenda. A number of Iraqi MPs have been urging the government to retake Tal Afar, which has been under ISIS hold for more than three years.
Jabouri also attended a photograph exhibition in the Iraqi parliament showcasing the plight of the Turkmens.
The liberation of Tal Afar was one subject discussed in a Wednesday phone call between Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and his Turkish counterpart Binali Yildirim.
Yildirim “expressed confidence in the ability of Iraq and its people to complete the liberation of Tal Afar and remnants of Mosul and Iraqi territory [from ISIS],” a readout of the phone call from the Iraqi Prime Minister's office read.
While Iraqi armed forces focused on ousting ISIS from Mosul, the Shiite Hashd al-Shaabi moved west of the city, clearing a tract of territory from Mosul to the Syrian border, including encircling the town of Tal Afar without entering it.
Turkey has long opposed the involvement of the Shiite force in the operation to retake Tal Afar from ISIS, citing concerns of violence at the hands of the group against the Turkmen-populated town and fearing it will alter the region's demographics.
Abadi told a tribal delegation from Tal Afar in late 2016 that the Hashd forces would not enter the Turkmen town and instead the Iraqi army would take over that mission.
ISIS remains in control of several areas in Iraq, including Tal Afar, Hawija, southwest of Kirkuk, and al-Qaim, west of Anbar.
Kurdish officials and Peshmerga have long complained that Iraqi authorities are delaying the offensive to recapture Hawija, considered to be the most significant stronghold of ISIS after their loss in Mosul. Militants from the Hawija area pose a significant threat to the security of Kirkuk.
A top Peshmerga official told Rudaw in early July that Iraq is putting the Hawija offensive at the back of the queue.
"Nothing is official yet, but we have been informed in our meeting with the coalition that after Mosul, Tal Afar and Ramadi operations will take place and after them Hawija," Chief of Staff of the Peshmerga Ministry Jabar Yawar told Rudaw English.
Ramadi is the capital city of Anbar province. The city itself was liberated in December 2015 by Iraqi security forces, but portions of the province remain under ISIS control.
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