Failure to implement the Sinjar Agreement impedes the return of 200,000 Yazidis from the camps

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[size=52]Failure to implement the Sinjar Agreement impedes the return of 200,000 Yazidis from the camps[/size]

[size=45]Translation / Hamed Ahmed[/size]
[size=45]An American committee reported that 200,000 Yazidis who survived the massacre of the terrorist organization ISIS are still in the camps, pointing out that the failure to implement the Sinjar Agreement impedes their return.[/size]
[size=45]The new annual report of the United States Commission on Freedom of Religion in the World stated that "the inability to implement the Sinjar Agreement and improve security in the region impede the ability of Yazidis to return and live in safety in their areas." The report, which was translated by (Al-Mada), added that "200,000 Yazidis who survived the ISIS massacre are still living in a state of displacement in the camps."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that "approximately 80,000 Yazidis have left Iraq, and the fate of 3,000 Yazidi women and girls kidnapped is still unknown, and their whereabouts are unknown."[/size]
[size=45]The report stressed, “The Sinjar region, the historical homeland of the Yazidis, is still almost empty of most of its neighborhoods for various reasons, including political tensions, the multiplicity of types of armed groups present, the absence of rehabilitation and restoration of infrastructure, the lack of infrastructure, as well as limited economic opportunities.”[/size]
[size=45]He noted that "the number of Christians from the Syriac, Assyrian and Chaldean sects who remained in Iraq is less than 250 thousand people, down from 700,000 Christians before the advent of ISIS and 1.4 million people before 2003."[/size]
[size=45]The report pointed out that "many Christians from the Nineveh Plains are still present in internal and external displacement camps, with the presence of armed groups operating in the area, which makes the return of the displaced and displaced more difficult."[/size]
[size=45]He continued, "Less than 60% of all Christians have returned to their areas, since the defeat of the terrorist organization ISIS in 2017; Because of the lack of security and the lack of economic opportunities.”[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The agreement signed between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government in October 2020 to provide security and protection for the Yazidis has not been implemented until the present time."[/size]
[size=45]While the report stated, “The inauguration of an independent municipal official for the Sinjar region has not happened yet,” he added, “Nobles from the Yazidi sect objected at the time for not being involved in the negotiations to conclude the Sinjar Agreement and were seeking an active role in its implementation.” The report emphasized that “the continuous Turkish air strikes targeting PKK militants in and around Sinjar region have emptied Assyrian villages of their residents and terrorized the residents of Sinjar region, causing the death of a large number of civilians.”[/size]
[size=45]And he added, "These air strikes hindered the ability of the Yazidis and members of other ethnic sects from the safe return to their homes, and even these raids led to a new displacement process."[/size]
[size=45]He also stated, "A Turkish air strike in May 2021 damaged a church in Dohuk, and in August 2021 another air strike in a residential village in Sinjar destroyed a health clinic, forcing hundreds of farmers to leave their homes."[/size]
[size=45]The report finds, "Thus, Turkish military operations continue to obstruct religious freedoms and a safe life in this region of Iraq." And he added, "The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, set March 6 as a national day for tolerance and coexistence between Iraq's ethnic and religious components, and that announcement came after the meeting that took place between Pope Francis and the Supreme Leader Ali al-Sistani in Najaf."[/size]
[size=45]The report continues, that "the meeting was followed by a joint statement by the two parties calling for cooperation and coexistence between the different religious sects and the renunciation of violence in Iraq and the world."[/size]
[size=45]And he continued, "The Iraqi parliament passed, in November of last year, the Yazidi Survivors Law, according to which the government would compensate Yazidi survivors of the brutal acts of ISIS."[/size]
[size=45]And the report concluded, “to recommend that the United States should continue its humanitarian support to Iraq in helping the displaced, and the US government’s continued support for rebuilding and stabilizing the freedoms of religious minorities as an important hinge in the stability of the country.”[/size]
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