ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United Nations Security Council on Thursday unanimously voted for a one-year extension for the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Daesh/ISIL’s (UNITAD) mandate. “Resolution 2651 renewed UNITAD’s mandate until 17 September 2023, first established by resolution 2379 (2017) upon the request of the Government of Iraq,” read a statement from UNITAD. Special Adviser and Head of UNITAD Christian Ritscher was quoted in the statement as saying that the mandate renewal is a “testament” to the international community’s commitment to the organisation, adding that “the Team will continue its work, in cooperation with the Government of Iraq and Member States, to serve our common goal of advancing justice for victims and survivors of ISIL’s international crimes.” “Iraq as well as all members of the Security Council showed again their unwavering support to UNITAD and its investigations, as a leading entity in the quest for accountability for ISIL heinous acts, which may amount for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide,” he noted. UNITAD has overseen the exhumation processes of Yazidis who were massacred by the ISIS when the terrorist organization swept across the ethno-religious group’s heartland, Shingal, and massacred over a thousand people. When receiving Ritscher in Erbil, Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani emphasized the “importance of UNITAD backing KRG criminal trials against ISIS terrorists.” The KRG in April proposed setting up a court in Erbil to try ISIS suspects, but that was rejected by Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court in June. Iraq has come under fire for its prosecution of suspected ISIS members. International observers have expressed concern about unfair trials.
