The Executive Council of the Democratic Autonomous Assembly of Shengal (Sinjar) released a statement after the massacre of 9 civilians and as many as 30 others in an artillery attack by the Turkish army in the countryside of the Duhok governorate in southern Kurdistan (northern Iraq) on July 20.

Calling for the expulsion of Turkish troops from Iraqi lands, the Autonomous Assembly of Shengal stated: “Betrayal repeats itself as the anniversary of the 3 August genocide (referring to the ISIS onslaught and mass slaughter in 2014) approaches. Those who abandoned the Yazidi people to face genocide have caused a massacre in Zakho this time. We all know only too well that it is the governments of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region that have paved the way for attacks by raising no voice against the increasingly ongoing attacks of the Turkish state.”

Condemning the Turkish massacre of Arab civilians on a picnic in Zakho and offering their condolences to the families, the statement continued: “As the people and autonomous administration of Shengal, we call on those responsible to act and stop the Turkish state which has carried out dozens of attacks on Shengal and killed our children as young as 12 years old. The occupying Turkish state uses the PKK as an excuse, yet the Iraqi state has seen clearly now that this is not the case. The Turkish state does not respect Iraq’s borders and sovereign rights. It should be seen that Al-Kadhimi put Iraqi lands into the service of the Turkish state. No one should accept this.”

The Autonomous Assembly of Shengal called for steps against Turkey to be taken in order for its troops to be withdrawn, military bases to be closed down and the Turkish army not be allowed to enter Iraq by air or land. The Turkish state does not see Iraq as a neighboring country. Nor does it respect Iraq and its people or recognize its sovereign rights. The Iraqi state remained silent while Turkish attacks claimed the lives of 12-year-old Yazidi boys in previous attacks. The cause of what happened yesterday is the silence of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region governments.”