The Executive Council of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) released a statement about Monday’s aggression launched by the Iraqi military on the Yazidi town of Shengal (Sinjar) in southern Kurdistan (northern Iraq).

The KNK statement released today includes the following:

“With a large number of soldiers, armored vehicles and tanks, the Iraqi army entered Sinjar (Şengal) and again attacked the YBŞ (Şengal Resistance Units), the YJŞ (Şengal Women’s Units) and the Asayîşa Êzîdxanê (internal security forces of the Yazidis). There is also a school among the bombed places in Dugir area of Sinjar.

Parallel to the Turkish invasion of the guerrilla areas in South Kurdistan (North Iraq) on April 17, 2022 and Turkey´s permanent attacks on Rojava, the Iraqi army had massively increased its military presence in the Yazidi settlement area of Sinjar in recent weeks and had closed many roads in the region. The goal is to cut off the connection between Sinjar, Rojava and the Medya Defense Zones is meant to be cut off, isolate all three areas and eventually crush their resistance.  Apparently, there is a collusion between the Erdogan government in Turkey, the Barzani party KDP (Kurdistan Democratic Party) in South Kurdistan and the Iraqi central government under Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

Why is the Iraqi army attacking the Yazidis now?

When the Yazidi genocide began on August 3, 2014, the administrative and security forces that were present in the area retreated from Sinjar. In the following weeks and months, a brutal genocide was carried out. The genocide was covered extensively by international media outlets and thus received great attention by the international community. From August 2014 until January 2015, a huge resistance was waged by the local Yazidi population in order to prevent the Islamic State (IS) from occupying Mount Sinjar.

At the same time, an organizational system was established among the population so that the people would not have to leave their homeland and would be able to protect themselves. The self-defense forces YBŞ and YJŞ were founded as part of these efforts. These self-defense forces liberated many cities and villages in Sinjar by December 19, 2014.

Today, the Iraqi army is attacking the Yazidis that survived the IS genocide in 2014 to dismantle their autonomous administration and self-defence structures. The same Iraqi army who abandoned the Yazidis in 2014 to be massacred by ISIS now attempts to bring a new order on Yazidis without promising a permanent solution discussed with the local administration.

The current problems facing the Yazidi community in Sinjar cannot be solved without including representatives of the Council of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of Sinjar (MXDŞ) and from all parts of Yazidi society.

We therefore call on the Iraqi army to immediately stop its military attacks on the Yazidis and  call the Iraqi government and political parties for peaceful solutions with the Yazidis' representatives
instead of war.”