More than 200 mass graves and a thousand bodies discovered in Iraq

In some regions in Iraq, which were temporarily under control of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS), more than two hundred mass graves with thousands of corpses were found. According to the United Nations reports.

In total, the report drawn up by the UN human rights agency contains 202 mass graves. And there is a suspicion that there will be a lot more. Only the northern and eastern regions of Nineveh, Kirkuk, Salah al-Din and Anbar have been mapped. Other areas still have to be combed out.

The smallest mass grave found is in West Mosul which of eight bodies were found. The largest mass grave has been found to the south of Mosul, with the remains of perhaps thousands of people including men, women, children, disabled and Iraqi forces. During the three-year power period of IS in Iraq, they shared videos several times so that the execution of innocent victims could be followed live.

Critical forensic material
The bodies are mainly those of victims who fell prey to the ruthless violence of IS. “Because they did not conform to the reprehensible ideology and their government,” said High UN Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet. “That is classified as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide”, for which the perpetrators can be tried. The report notes that the sites provide critical forensic material that can lead to identification of victims and can bring perpetrators to justice. The mass graves also outline the extent of crimes committed by IS.

IS controlled large parts of Iraq between mid-2014 and the end of 2017. After a US-backed campaign that lasted for three years, Baghdad proclaimed victory over “jihadists” in December.