Yazidis say alleged mosque attack stokes tensions in Shingal

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Yazidis on Friday are worried about what they said are attempts to disturb the peace in Shingal after accusations that members of the religious minority had set fire to a mosque in the northern Iraqi city.

A protest was held in Shingal on Thursday against the recent return of several Arab families to the region where Islamic State (ISIS) militants committed genocide against Yazidis nearly nine years ago. Videos shared on social media showed demonstrators protesting near the mosque with a small fire burning outside the premises and security forces firing bullets into the air in an attempt to disperse crowd. Muslim groups based in Shingal claimed that the Yazidis had set fire to a mosque during the protest.

The incident sparked heated reactions on social media, with some using inflammatory terms to describe Yazidis and calling for justice. Others jumped to the Yazidis' defense and tried to maintain peace between the two sides.

Security officials of the Nineveh Joint-Operations Command on Friday morning denied there had been a fire inside the mosque. They called the reports “baseless” and rejected all attempts to drive a wedge between groups living in the diverse province.

In 2014, ISIS seized control of much of Nineveh province, including the Shingal area that is a Yazidi heartland. The militants killed, kidnapped, and enslaved Yazidis, committing genocide against the minority that has long been persecuted in Iraq. Insecurity and tensions between groups in Shingal remain high more than five years after ISIS was declared defeated in Iraq.

The cultural and social center at the Yazidi temple Lalish condemned assaults on religious targets, saying attacking a mosque is “unacceptable.” It also condemned spreading misinformation. 

“Publishing baseless and untrue posts to gain some likes will lead to the end of social peace, therefore relevant authorities must monitor these pages and bring them to justice,” read a statement from the center.

Mir Hazim Tahsin Bag, the chief of the Yazidi community, also denied the attack on the mosque, telling Rudaw that such behavior is contrary to Yazidi morality.

The protest in Shingal follows the recent return of some Arab families to the region where mistrust is still high between Yazidis and Muslims who Yazidis accuse of having ties to ISIS.

Badrya Faysal, a Yazidi woman who survived ISIS, told Rudaw on Friday that among the group who recently returned to Shingal, she recognized an ISIS member from her time in captivity.

The Iraqi government last week shut down al-Jada 5 camp in Nineveh province where hundreds of families with alleged ISIS ties were living. Residents were given 48-hour notice to vacate the camp. The United Nations criticized the closure and called on Baghdad to ensure the safety of the families. The camp housed 1,566 people, almost two-thirds of them children, according to the UN.

Ali Jihangir, an official from Iraq’s migration and displacement ministry, told Rudaw that none of the Arab families that have returned to Shingal were from Jada camp.

 

Updated at 4:54 pm