Over 200 Mass Graves of ISIS Victims Discovered in Iraq - UN Report

Published November 6th, 2018 - 01:07 GMT
Iraqi soldiers check a mass grave they discovered in the Hamam al-Alil area on November 7, 2016, after they recaptured the area from Islamic State of Iraq. (AFP/File)
Iraqi soldiers check a mass grave they discovered in the Hamam al-Alil area on November 7, 2016, after they recaptured the area from Islamic State of Iraq. (AFP/File)

More than 200 mass graves containing the remains of thousands of victims have been discovered in areas formerly controlled by Daesh terrorist group in Iraq, according to a UN report on Tuesday.

"The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and the UN Human Rights Office have documented the existence of 202 mass grave sites in the governorates of Ninewa, Kirkuk, Salah al-Din and Anbar in the northern and western parts of the country – but there may be many more," the report said.

It said it was difficult to determine the total number of people in these graves, adding: "The smallest site, in west Mosul, contained eight bodies while the biggest is believed to be the Khasfa sinkhole south of Mosul which may contain thousands."

Between June 2014 and Dec. 2017, the report said, Daesh seized large areas of Iraq and led “a campaign of widespread violence and systematic violations of international human rights and humanitarian law – acts that may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and possible genocide."

This article has been adapted from its original source.