British MPs discuss the horror of ISIS crimes against Yazidis

Alannah Travers

ERBIL, Kurdistan - A backbench business committee debate held in the British Parliament on Tuesday heard from a range of MPs on the issue of whether the United Kingdom government should call the horrific atrocities committed by the Islamic State (ISIS) against the Yazidi community in Iraq a “genocide.”  

While those who attended spoke passionately of the importance of recognising what happened to the ancient religious community as genocide, the government’s representative fell short of calling the grotesque crimes committed against the community as such, instead honouring a long-standing, and many argue erroneous, policy of recognising genocide only following judgment of 'competent criminal court.'

Many made the point in the debate put forward by Scottish National Party MP Brendan O’Hara that a German criminal court recently ruled that crimes committed against the Yazidis from August 2014 do constitute a genocide.

In addition, the United Nations and the European parliament, as well as other nations including the United States, Belgium, Canada, and the Netherlands have already recognised ISIS crimes against the Yazidis as genocide. 

The responsible minister, James Cleverly MP, did not attend Tuesday’s session. His replacement, Chris Heaton-Harris MP, told attendees that, "It is the long-standing policy of the British Government that the determination of genocide should be made by a competent court." 

In response to nearly all other MPs raising the recent Germany case as an example, in which a German criminal court in November found an ISIS militant guilty for crimes of genocide committed against Yazidis, Heaton-Harris responded that the government was “hesitant to comment on ongoing legal proceedings.”

Shadow Foreign Office Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Bambos Charalambous MP, spoke passionately on the importance of providing justice to the Yazidi community.

“Many horrors, atrocities and human rights abuses have been committed during the war in Syria, but the genocide against the Yazidi people carried out by Daesh between 2014 and 2017 must rank as one of the worst,” the shadow minister said. 

“While the Government have condemned the atrocities against the Yazidis, they have not done the one thing in their power that could really help the situation," he added.

Brendan O’ Hara MP described the investigation into crimes against Yazidis as "the duty of the British government and other countries" and said, "In order for the crimes not to be repeated, the killing of Yazidis must be recognized as genocide."

"I am so disappointed that the Government still will not call this out and call it what it is. I understand that the federal court in Germany is reviewing this case, but across the world, this genocide has been recognised, and we should be taking a lead on this matter, not hiding behind an appeal to a German federal court to block us from doing what we know is the right thing," he concluded. 

On August 3, 2014, ISIS launched a large-scale offensive in and around Shingal, Iraq.

According to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Office for Rescuing Kidnapped Yazidis, over 120,000 Yazidis have left Iraq since ISIS waged their devastating campaign on the community, and tens of thousands of those who remain in the region live in camps.  

Statistics provided by the Yazidi Rescue Office, approved by the United Nations, estimate that:

  • The number of Yazidis in Iraq before August 2014 was around 550,000
  • The number of Yazidis displaced by ISIS is around 360,000
  • The number of Yazidis who have returned to Shingal is around 150,000
  • Approximately 1,293 Yazidis were killed in the first few days of ISIS’ 2014 attack
  • The number of children orphaned by this 2014 attack on the Yazidis was 2,745
  • So far, 82 mass graves have been found in Shingal, in addition to dozens of individual graves
  • 68 shrines and temples in the Shingal region were blown up and destroyed by ISIS
  • More than 100,000 people have fled the country due to ISIS attacks and the dire situation
  • So far, 3,550 people have been rescued from ISIS including; 1,206 women, 339 men, 1,049 girls, and 956 boys
  • The number of people left in the hands of ISIS is 2,763: 1,293 are women and 1,470 are men

A House of Commons briefing, setting out the government's long-standing position, was available to MPs before the debate.