‘Calling ISIL Atrocities Against the Yezidis by Their Rightful Name’: Do They Constitute the Crime of Genocide?

Abstract

In March 2016, both the US House of Representatives and Secretary of State John Kerry designated the alleged crimes committed by ISIL against, inter alia, the Yezidis, a small religious minority in Iraq and Syria, as 'genocide.' This article examines the evidence for this designation as emerges from various human rights reports and other publicly available sources, to assess whether ISIL's actions against the Yezidis may be legally characterized as the crime of genocide. The article finds that, while ISIL's actions against the Yezidis in Iraq and Syria may constitute the underlying acts of the crime of genocide, on the basis of information currently available in the public domain, it is not possible to reach a view on whether individuals perpetrators had the dolus specialis necessary to commit the crime of genocide. The article, however, outlines a pattern of conduct which could indicate a genocidal plan.

Tiny Religious Minorities in the Middle East: The Case of the Bahai, Druze and Yazidi Minorities

“…Regarding the Yezidi community, much has been written about the plight of the Iraqi Yezidis and the genocide attempt by ISIS to eliminate this minority [15,16]. This genocide includes the following practices:…”

State‐society relations and inter‐communal dynamics in conflict: Non‐Muslim minorities in post‐IS Iraq

“…Understandably, the bulk of the extant scholarly literature has focused on various dimensions of the human suffering unleashed by the IS against Iraq's Christians and Yazidis (Barber, 2016; Nicolaus & Yuce, 2017). Others have sought to examine the possible domestic and international legal mechanisms for prosecuting members of the IS for their crimes against Yazidis and Christians (Hechler, 2017; Mantilla, 2016) and the extent to which these actions meet the various legal definitions of genocide (Dakhil et al, 2017; Osborne et al, 2019). Additional research has examined the destruction of Yazidi and Christian heritage and its consequences for these small communities, their religious practices, their sense of belonging and the role that heritage reconstruction can play in fostering return and a renewed sense of solidarity (Isakhan & Shahab, 2020; Shahab, 2021).…”

The Last Genocide against the Yazidi People

“…28 This association with the Peacock Angel that has led to the Yazidi being misleadingly described as "devil worshippers." 29 Other common misconceptions include the perception that the Yazidi religion contains polytheistic elements and prejudices about the fact that they have an oral tradition rather than a written scripture. 30 Throughout history, there have been attempts by both Yazidis and non-Yazidis to link the group to a specific ethnic identity, usually in connection with contemporary political factors.…”

“…One theory views the Yazidis as descendants of the ancient Assyrians; another theory provides for a totally Islamic origin for the Yazidis; and yet another theory, associated with Kurdish nationalism, claims descent from the Medes for the Kurds. 31 But Yazidis are a religious minority with many taboos and a strict caste system. They are neither Muslim, Christian, nor Jewish and therefore not "People of the Book."…”