More information about the reference period for this report can be found in the Methodology section of the Introduction. The purpose of this report is to provide relevant context information with a view to the.
Persons with perceived affiliation to ISIL
Prosecutions of suspected ISIL involvement and people convicted of terrorism
- Children suspected of ISIL involvement
- Former ISIL suspects
In addition, he conducts literature reviews and interviews with local and international actors in the field of children's human rights. Human Rights Watch reported that they were detained in a KRI camp, where security forces allowed them to leave for Baghdad-controlled areas but prevented them from leaving to resettle elsewhere in the KRI.
Iraqis detained or in camps in Syria and returning to Iraq from Al Hol camp
- Repatriations from Syria to Iraq
47 VOA, Hundreds of Iraqi citizens flee al-Hol refugee camp in Syria, September 30, 2021, url; Washington Post (The), Syrian detention camp rocked by dozens of killings blamed on Islamic State women, 19 Sept. 2021, url. 51 Voice of America (VOA) reported similar figures in two waves (868 individuals) of al-Hol returnees: VOA, Hundreds of Iraqi nationals leave al-Hol refugee camp in Syria, 30 September 2021, url.
Family members with perceived ISIL affiliation
- IDPs and perceived ISIL affiliation
- Women
- Children
69 International Crisis Group, Exiles in their own country: Coping with displacement in post-ISIS Iraq, 19 October 2020, url, p. 39; Protection Cluster Iraq, Protection Analysis Report: Right to identity and civil documentation, October 2021, url, p.
Sunni Arabs
General situation of Sunni Arabs in Iraq
Sunni marginalization continues to be the main narrative of Iraq experts and political analysts when commenting on the status of Iraq's Sunni Arabs.164 For example, in 2021 the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) reported that “de-. This distrust weakens the national influence of Sunni elites and fuels intra-Sunni conflicts in parts of Iraq ravaged by ISIS.170
Treatment of Sunni Arabs
The government is preventing approximately 1,200 Arab families from returning to their homes in 5 villages more than 6 years after the area was recaptured from the Islamic State.178 USDOS reported that in 2020 entry restrictions for internally displaced persons and refugees attempting to return to their home areas. According to sources cited by the USDOS, in 2020 "the government continued to use the anti-terrorism law as a pretext to detain individuals without due process".184 Sunni leaders reported that authorities invoked the law when detaining young Sunni men. for suspected links to ISIL. .
Political opposition activists and protesters
Political opposition and protests in Iraq
- Recent developments in protests
- Government response to protests
- Examples of targeting of protesters/activists
- Targeting of online activists
Security forces used force to disperse the crowds, resulting in the death of one protester and at least 10 injuries. Incidents targeting activists and protesters in the period August 2020 to October 2021 (non-exhaustive list).
Political opposition and protests in the KRI
- Recent developments in protests
- KRG response to protests
- Examples of targeting of protesters/activists
- Targeting of online activists
Amnesty International reported that in 2020 the authorities in the KRI targeted activists and protesters participating in protests. Online journalists and activists were regularly detained and arrested in the KRI; however long prison sentences for online content were rare.303.
Religious and ethnic minorities, and stateless persons
Christians
- General situation of Christians in Iraq and the KRI
- Instances of targeting of Christians in Iraq and the KRI
- Situation of Christian converts in Iraq and the KRI
331 United States Institute of Peace (USIP), The Pope's Visit to Iraq and the Future of the Country's Christians, March 3, 2021, url. The most prominent PMF militias present in Christian regions are the 50th Brigade (Babylon Brigades) and 30th Brigade (Liwa Al-Shabak), as well as the 36th Yazidi Brigade (Lalish Regiment) .346 The 36th Brigade is a Yazidi regiment of the PMF involved in 'violations against Muslims and Christians in Mount Sinjar and al-Kayrwan'.347.
Turkmen
- General situation of Turkmen in Iraq and the KRI
- Treatment of Sunni and Shia Turkmen
- Instances of targeting of Turkmen
404 Denmark, DIS and Norway, Landinfo, Iraq: The security situation and the situation of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the disputed areas, 5 November 2018, url, p. In Kirkuk city, the PMF support was reported to have made Shia Turkmen "more politically assertive", despite being a minority in the city compared to Sunni Turkmen. A similar situation among Shia-Sunni Turkmen was reported in Tal Afar district.425 As reported by Al-Monitor, based on 'a Turkmen source from Mosul', Mosul, Shia Turkmen as well as Yazidis and other minorities value[d ] The PMU's role in the area.426.
427 Denmark, DIS and Norway, Landinfo, Iraq: Security situation and situation for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in disputed areas, 5 November 2018, url, p.
Yazidis
- General situation of Yazidis in Iraq and the KRI
- Treatment of Yazidis in Iraq and in the KRI
- Situation of Yazidi women and children
The USDOS stated that there were many women and children previously held captive by ISIS. Not all Yezidis are in favor of Mir Hazim Tahsin Beg, who in 2020 became the "religio-political leader of the Yezidi community", undermining his leadership. 472 Carnegie Middle East Center, Making the Kurdish Border: Power, Conflict, and Governance on the Iraq-Syria Borderlands, March 2021, url, p.
473 Carnegie Middle East Centre, The Making of the Kurdish Frontier: Power, Conflict, and Governance in the Iraqi-Sirian Borderlands, Maart 2021, url, pp.
Palestinians
In addition, former child soldiers often experience difficulties in attending school settings due to experiences with ISIL “institutions”, which may include beatings and other physical and psychological harm.542. Amnesty International noted that Yazidi former child soldiers, indoctrinated by ISIL, "continued to lead an isolated existence" even after returning to their families, as families struggled to recognize or acknowledge their experiences in captivity.543 The language barrier was a major obstacle to successful reintegration of surviving children of ISIL captivity. Children released from ISIL captivity who returned to their families were often unable to speak or understand (Kurmanji) Kurdish, the language spoken by their families, while speaking Arabic.
According to Amnesty International, neither Amnesty International nor its interviewees were aware of any governmental or non-governmental support to deal with the language barrier of liberated ISIS children to reintegration.544.
Journalists, media workers and human rights activists
- General situation of journalists and other media workers in Iraq and the KRI
- Situation of journalists and media workers in Iraq
- Situation of journalists and media workers in the KRI
- Incidents of targeting journalists in Iraq and the KRI
- Incidents of targeting journalists and media workers in Iraq
- Incidents of targeting of journalists and media workers in the KRI
- General situation of human rights activists in Iraq and the KRI
- The situation of human rights activists in Iraq
- The situation of human rights activists in the KRI
- Incidents of targeting human rights activists in Iraq and the KRI
- Incidents of targeting human rights activists in Iraq
- Instances of targeting human rights defenders in the KRI
617 GCHR, General: Iraqi Kurdistan: GCHR periodic report on human rights violations in the Kurdistan Region, 23 Aug. 2021, url. 634 Civicus, Popular Protest: Demonstrators, Journalists and Human Rights Defenders Killed, Attacked and Silenced, 7 August 2020, url. 641 GCHR, Iraq: GCJR's 14th periodic report on human rights violations during popular protests, 9 May 2021, url.
652 Civicus, Popular Protests: Protesters, Journalists and Human Rights Defenders Killed, Attacked and Silenced, 7 August 2020, url.
Individuals perceived to transgress moral codes
Perception and treatment of individuals perceived as westernised in the Iraqi
Examples of this include the perception of provocative clothing, displaying sexuality, flirting with men, being unmarried and flirting, engaging in sexual acts before marriage.669 According to Freedom House, “both men and women face pressure to conform. Based on this perception, women involved in public life may also be targeted and may face backlash and harassment.671 Individuals perceived to lead an "amoral" lifestyle and women involved in the public sphere face with harassment, especially online through social media. Online harassment can be aggressive, and according to an expert interviewed, female activists are harassed to a much greater extent, and their photos and addresses can be shared online alongside messages calling for their rape or murder.672.
One of the female candidates running in the 2021 elections reported being targeted and harassed: many of her banners were destroyed or disappeared.673 Similarly, International Crisis Group noted that in early 2020 during the Tishreen protests campaigns in which female activists were portrayed as promiscuous, families were discouraged from allowing their daughters to join the protests.
Instances of targeting of individuals perceived as westernised in Iraq and the KRI
Women
- General situation of women in Iraq and the KRI
- Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Iraq and the KRI
- Rape
- Domestic violence
- Child forced-marriage and trafficking
- Conflict-related sexual violence
- Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
- Treatment of single/divorced/widowed women in Iraq and the KRI
- Treatment of women perceived to transgress moral codes in Iraq and the KRI
A mapping report for SGBV in Iraq between 2003 and 2018 found an increase in the number of honor killings. 720 Abed A., Violence Against Women in Iraq: Between Practice and Legislation, LSE se Middle East Center Blog, 8 July 2020, url. 734 Abed A., Violence against women in Iraq: between practice and law, LSE se Middle East Center Blog, 8 July 2020, url.
737 Abed A., Violence against women in Iraq: between practice and law, LSE's Middle East Center Blog, July 8, 2020, url.
Persons involved in and affected by blood/land feuds in the context of tribal conflict
Context of tribalism in Iraq
Interaction between the formal and tribal legal systems
Conflict resolution practices in customary law
Blood and land feuds
The role of tribes in areas formerly captured by ISIL
The role of tribes in southern Iraq
General situation of persons collaborating (or perceived to be collaborating) with
Instances of targeting of persons belonging to this profile
Atheists, converts and individuals considered to have committed apostasy
Prevalence in KRI / Iraq
According to the CIA World Factbook, as of October 20, 2021, between 95 and 98% of the population of Iraq was Muslim.950 It has been noted that it is impossible to identify the size of the non-religious population in Iraq951 nor the number not. of Christian converts in the KRI. 952 An August 2020 DFAT report estimated that there are approximately 1,000 Baha'is living in Iraq and some Muslim leaders consider Baha'is to be apostates from Islam.953 A Reuters article noted in September 2020 that the Zoroastrianism Yasna association in Kurdistan about 15,000 people registered with the organization, most of whom were Kurds who had converted from Islam.954 Sources pointed to an increase in recent years of secularism955 and atheism956 in Iraq and the numbers of Muslims converting to Zoroastrianism converted in the KRI957. Religious Demographics; Canada, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Iraq: Situation and treatment of Christians, especially in the north, the Kurdistan region and Baghdad; government protection and support programs (2017–September 2020) [IRQ200350.E], 9 October 2020, url; Australia, DFAT, DFAT Country Information Report on Iraq, 17 August 2020, url, para.
An August 2020 DFAT report noted that it is allegedly easier to convert from Islam in the KRI.
Treatment of atheists, converts and perceived apostates
Treatment of atheists, converts and perceived apostates by state authorities
981 UK All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion of Belief, Commentary on the Current State of International Freedom of Religion of Belief (2020), February 2021, url, p.33. 985 Republic of Iraq Supreme Judicial Council/High Judicial Court, imprisonment for two years for a convict who insults the position of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) through social media pages, May 13, 2020, url. According to the US Department of State's annual report covering 2020, the personal status laws that prohibit Muslims from converting to another religion have rarely been enforced in the KRI.992 Outside the KRI, the law does not provide a mechanism for a new religious group to obtain legal recognition.
998 UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on International Freedom of Religion or Belief, Commentary on the Current State of International Freedom of Religion or Belief (2020), February 2021, url, p.
Treatment of atheists, converts and apostates by non-state actors
Bibliography
AI (Amnesty International), Iraq/Kurdistan Region-Iraq: Journalists must be released immediately, 26 February 2021, https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-. GCHR (Gulf Center for Human Rights), Iraq: Sixth periodic report on violations during popular demonstrations, 3 July 2020, https://www.gc4hr.org/news/view/2420, accessed 30 November 2021. HRW (Human Rights Watch), Iraq: Abductions Linked to Baghdad Protests, 2 December 2019, https://www.hrw.org/news iraq-abductions-linked-baghdad-protests, accessed 3 November 2021.
HRW (Human Rights Watch), Iraq: No Justice for Enforced Disappearances, November 16, 2020, https://www.hrw.org/news iraq-no-justice-enforced-disappearances, accessed November 3, 2021. KCCRC (Kurdistan Conflict and Crisis Research Centre), Honor killing in Iraq, 14 August 2021, https://www.kurdistanc.com/en/details.aspx?jimare=1126, accessed 13 October 2021. OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) /SIGI ( Social Institute & .Gender Index), Iraq, 2019 https://www.genderindex.org/wp-.
Terms of Reference
The Situation of Christian Converts (referring to the chapter on Atheists, Converts and Apostates). Instances of targeting of individuals perceived as Westernized (by armed groups, by tribes, by family members). Treatment of single/divorced/widowed women (including single women in households) in both Iraq and KRI.
Cases of attacks on persons belonging to this profile (by armed actors or by society).
