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[size=47]Iraq's Disappeared: The first official recognition of their liquidation at the hands of militias[/size]
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Baghdad
Zaid Salem
December 10, 2022
An Iraqi boy walks in a street in Fallujah, in Anbar, 2016 (Sabah Arar/AFP)
A wide shock in the Iraqi street, especially among the residents of the provinces of Anbar, Salah al-Din, Diyala, Nineveh and Babel, was caused by [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] Muhammad al-Halbousi, who spoke last Wednesday about the killing of the kidnapped Iraqis from the cities of north, west and central Iraq, estimated at thousands, who were taken away by militias. Armed forces between 2014 and 2016, during their displacement from combat zones to unknown destinations.
The people were clinging to the hope of the return of these [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] , especially with rumors continuing to circulate about their presence in secret militia detention centers in areas they control, most notably Jurf al-Sakhar, at a time when the government of Muhammad Shia al-Sudani at its various levels is still silent about this file.
Al-Halbousi believed that "the state must do justice to their families and include their families in the law of victims of terrorism, and with compensation. As for continuing to mislead their families from 2014 until now, it is not true ... They were absent and assassinated during that period." He added: "To be more daring with people who lost their loved ones." And their children... the file should not be used for political slander... and giving their families hope for their return, this is not true."
Several militias are accused of being behind the absence of these people, most notably the Hezbollah Brigades, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Badr, Sayyid al-Shuhada, Imam Ali, Khorasani, Rasalion, al-Nujaba, and other armed groups.
Following al-Halbousi's statements, media platforms linked to armed factions, most notably the Iraqi "Hezbollah Brigades" and "Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq", launched a sharp attack on him. Commenting on Al-Halbousi's announcement, the "Sabreen News" channel said on the "Telegram" platform: "Do not be surprised to talk about the absentees. Yes, a faction alone faced 15,000 takfiris," referring to the absentees, whom it described by saying, "They have become absent from us."
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[size=12]political biography
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The close associate of the "Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq" group, Ahmed Abd al-Sada, considered al-Halbousi's announcement to cover up his involvement in corruption files, and described the absentees as "terrorists," and that al-Halbousi's proposal was in order to "raise his political and popular balance in the Sunni community and to cover up his upcoming corruption scandal, which he will consider targeting." him because of his adoption of Sunni issues.”
The Observatory asked: "Where is the Iraqi judiciary regarding these crimes that amount to ethnic cleansing operations, as it is no longer a secret in Iraq that the expulsion of the terrorist organization ISIS from the cities of the north and west of the country was accompanied by reprisals against the population."
A member of parliament for the “Taqdad” party, which is led by al-Halbousi, said, “Everyone knows that they are dead, but for years no one dares to be frank with people, especially the wives, mothers, and children of the victims, and there was immoral electoral exploitation by some Sunni political blocs of this file.” ".
The deputy, who asked not to be named, added, in a telephone conversation with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that "investigations confirm that they were liquidated in the first days of their kidnapping, and that they were executed in different regions."
He pointed out that "in the past periods, there were signs of opening the cities controlled by some armed factions as a start to know the fate of the abductees, but even this hope faded in the face of the factions' insistence not to withdraw from those towns." He concluded by saying: "We are now trying to obtain rights for their families. This is all we have, because the party that betrayed them is known and is stronger than the state.
For his part, Raad al-Dahlaki, an Iraqi representative for the "Sovereignty" coalition, confirmed to The New Arab that "all political forces had agreed within the (state administration) coalition to open this file and end it as it should be in the government of Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani." .
Al-Dahlaki pointed out that "this is one of the conditions put forward by the Sovereignty Coalition, given that it is an Iraqi issue and concerns thousands of Iraqis on the one hand, and that most of the absent or treacherous people are from the north and west of Iraq to which most of the members of the coalition belong on the other hand."
In another confirmation of the killing of all the kidnapped, Al-Dahlaki said, "The coalition is still following this file until it reaches good results, and the current goal (of the coalition) is to compensate the victims' families with all forms of support."
For his part, the leader of the "Azm" coalition, Haider Al-Mulla, pointed out that "most of the national forces support opening the file of the disappeared, especially after nearly 8 years have passed since their fate was not known, and this point was the most prominent in the negotiations to form the current government."
And Al-Mulla considered, in contact with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that “the current prime minister seems to be serious about resolving this file, but there is an urgent need for more strength for this government, because this file in particular represents a strategic threat to armed groups that are accused of missing dozens of people.” thousands of Iraqis.
Aliwi stressed that "the armed factions and the Popular Mobilization Forces have nothing to do with the file of the disappeared," and accused some political forces of "insulting the Popular Mobilization Forces by accusing them of the absence of Iraqis from the liberated cities."
In a report, Human Rights Watch, in mid-May 2020, accused armed groups within the "Popular Mobilization Forces" of being behind the kidnappings and forced disappearances of residents of northern and western Iraq fleeing the battles.
She said those forces stopped the men and girls at 78 checkpoints as part of counter-terrorism measures, and all of the disappearances occurred at those checkpoints. The report quoted the families of the victims as testimonies about how these forces isolated the men and boys from the women and took them to unknown places, confirming that the country, north of Fallujah, recorded the abduction of hundreds of men according to this method.
Earlier, the leader of the Iraqi "National Project" party, Jamal al-Dari, considered that the continued [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] confirms "the need to internationalize the issue."
Al-Dari said in a statement last June that the latest Human Rights Watch report on the crime of enforced disappearance of a large number of Iraqis and the successive governments' disregard for this file confirms the need to internationalize the genocide committed by terrorist groups. Since more than 5 years have passed since these acts, the government remains silent, and the crimes of assassinations, kidnappings, and the seizure of Jurf al-Sakhar continue.”
Commenting on these developments, the researcher in political affairs, Kitab Al-Mizan, indicated that "it is necessary for the families of the victims, the kidnapped and the disappeared, or the murdered, as al-Halbousi called them, to file personal complaints in all courts and police stations in Iraq, to report the disappearance of their children, to register kidnapping cases, and to speak via Informing about their enforced disappearance in every governorate, especially since Al-Halbousi's announcement is not a political position or point of view, but rather it represents official information.
Al-Mizan pointed out, in an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that “opening an investigation regarding the slain will open dangerous doors for investigation and revealing the parties that have been absent from them for years and participated in their execution, and these must be held accountable.” He expected that “we will witness a stage of clash between the government and the militias accused of killing thousands Iraqis during military operations against ISIS.
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The people were clinging to the hope of the return of these [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] , especially with rumors continuing to circulate about their presence in secret militia detention centers in areas they control, most notably Jurf al-Sakhar, at a time when the government of Muhammad Shia al-Sudani at its various levels is still silent about this file.
Al-Halbousi's "disclosure" about the fate of the disappeared
Al-Halbousi said, in an interview with a local Iraqi TV station: "We must tell people who they are (the disappeared), and change their name first to the slain, not the absent: slain have passed away."Al-Halbousi believed that "the state must do justice to their families and include their families in the law of victims of terrorism, and with compensation. As for continuing to mislead their families from 2014 until now, it is not true ... They were absent and assassinated during that period." He added: "To be more daring with people who lost their loved ones." And their children... the file should not be used for political slander... and giving their families hope for their return, this is not true."
Al-Halbousi's statement is the first of its kind that deals with the issue of thousands of missing Iraqis who were taken away by armed militias between 2014 and 2016, during their displacement from their areas controlled by ISIS. Cities in northern and western Iraq, they were taken to unknown places after being isolated from their families during their journey of displacement to areas outside the military operations that were taking place against ISIS.Al-Halbousi's statement constitutes an official recognition by an Iraqi official of the liquidation of between 18 and 22 thousand Iraqis from the cities of northern and western Iraq.
Several militias are accused of being behind the absence of these people, most notably the Hezbollah Brigades, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Badr, Sayyid al-Shuhada, Imam Ali, Khorasani, Rasalion, al-Nujaba, and other armed groups.
Following al-Halbousi's statements, media platforms linked to armed factions, most notably the Iraqi "Hezbollah Brigades" and "Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq", launched a sharp attack on him. Commenting on Al-Halbousi's announcement, the "Sabreen News" channel said on the "Telegram" platform: "Do not be surprised to talk about the absentees. Yes, a faction alone faced 15,000 takfiris," referring to the absentees, whom it described by saying, "They have become absent from us."
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
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[size=12]political biography
[/size]
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
The close associate of the "Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq" group, Ahmed Abd al-Sada, considered al-Halbousi's announcement to cover up his involvement in corruption files, and described the absentees as "terrorists," and that al-Halbousi's proposal was in order to "raise his political and popular balance in the Sunni community and to cover up his upcoming corruption scandal, which he will consider targeting." him because of his adoption of Sunni issues.”
Official declaration of death
On the other hand, the AFAD Observatory for Human Rights in Iraq issued a statement in which it considered al-Halbousi's speech "an official announcement of their execution at the hands of armed militias during the expulsion of ISIS in Iraq." The statement added, "The Observatory reported wondering about the identity of those militias that executed thousands of innocent civilians in those areas."The Observatory asked: "Where is the Iraqi judiciary regarding these crimes that amount to ethnic cleansing operations, as it is no longer a secret in Iraq that the expulsion of the terrorist organization ISIS from the cities of the north and west of the country was accompanied by reprisals against the population."
A member of parliament for the “Taqdad” party, which is led by al-Halbousi, said, “Everyone knows that they are dead, but for years no one dares to be frank with people, especially the wives, mothers, and children of the victims, and there was immoral electoral exploitation by some Sunni political blocs of this file.” ".
The deputy, who asked not to be named, added, in a telephone conversation with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that "investigations confirm that they were liquidated in the first days of their kidnapping, and that they were executed in different regions."
He pointed out that "in the past periods, there were signs of opening the cities controlled by some armed factions as a start to know the fate of the abductees, but even this hope faded in the face of the factions' insistence not to withdraw from those towns." He concluded by saying: "We are now trying to obtain rights for their families. This is all we have, because the party that betrayed them is known and is stronger than the state.
For his part, Raad al-Dahlaki, an Iraqi representative for the "Sovereignty" coalition, confirmed to The New Arab that "all political forces had agreed within the (state administration) coalition to open this file and end it as it should be in the government of Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani." .
Al-Dahlaki pointed out that "this is one of the conditions put forward by the Sovereignty Coalition, given that it is an Iraqi issue and concerns thousands of Iraqis on the one hand, and that most of the absent or treacherous people are from the north and west of Iraq to which most of the members of the coalition belong on the other hand."
In another confirmation of the killing of all the kidnapped, Al-Dahlaki said, "The coalition is still following this file until it reaches good results, and the current goal (of the coalition) is to compensate the victims' families with all forms of support."
For his part, the leader of the "Azm" coalition, Haider Al-Mulla, pointed out that "most of the national forces support opening the file of the disappeared, especially after nearly 8 years have passed since their fate was not known, and this point was the most prominent in the negotiations to form the current government."
And Al-Mulla considered, in contact with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that “the current prime minister seems to be serious about resolving this file, but there is an urgent need for more strength for this government, because this file in particular represents a strategic threat to armed groups that are accused of missing dozens of people.” thousands of Iraqis.
On the other hand, the leader of the "Coordination Framework" coalition, Representative Karim Aliwi, considered in a statement to "The New Arab" that "some parties are working to manipulate the file of the absentees, highlighting it for a while and then obscuring it, and it is nothing more than an electoral and political card that wants to posed by political forces.Representative of the Sovereignty Alliance: The current goal is to compensate the families of the victims
Aliwi stressed that "the armed factions and the Popular Mobilization Forces have nothing to do with the file of the disappeared," and accused some political forces of "insulting the Popular Mobilization Forces by accusing them of the absence of Iraqis from the liberated cities."
In a report, Human Rights Watch, in mid-May 2020, accused armed groups within the "Popular Mobilization Forces" of being behind the kidnappings and forced disappearances of residents of northern and western Iraq fleeing the battles.
She said those forces stopped the men and girls at 78 checkpoints as part of counter-terrorism measures, and all of the disappearances occurred at those checkpoints. The report quoted the families of the victims as testimonies about how these forces isolated the men and boys from the women and took them to unknown places, confirming that the country, north of Fallujah, recorded the abduction of hundreds of men according to this method.
Earlier, the leader of the Iraqi "National Project" party, Jamal al-Dari, considered that the continued [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] confirms "the need to internationalize the issue."
Al-Dari said in a statement last June that the latest Human Rights Watch report on the crime of enforced disappearance of a large number of Iraqis and the successive governments' disregard for this file confirms the need to internationalize the genocide committed by terrorist groups. Since more than 5 years have passed since these acts, the government remains silent, and the crimes of assassinations, kidnappings, and the seizure of Jurf al-Sakhar continue.”
Commenting on these developments, the researcher in political affairs, Kitab Al-Mizan, indicated that "it is necessary for the families of the victims, the kidnapped and the disappeared, or the murdered, as al-Halbousi called them, to file personal complaints in all courts and police stations in Iraq, to report the disappearance of their children, to register kidnapping cases, and to speak via Informing about their enforced disappearance in every governorate, especially since Al-Halbousi's announcement is not a political position or point of view, but rather it represents official information.
Al-Mizan pointed out, in an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that “opening an investigation regarding the slain will open dangerous doors for investigation and revealing the parties that have been absent from them for years and participated in their execution, and these must be held accountable.” He expected that “we will witness a stage of clash between the government and the militias accused of killing thousands Iraqis during military operations against ISIS.
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