MP accuses government of hindering reconstruction efforts in Sinjar

Shafaq News / A member of the Iraqi parliamentary services committee, Mahma Khalil, has accused the government of trying to hinder reconstruction efforts in the city of Sinjar and the Nineveh Plain by merging the two regions into a single reconstruction fund.

Khalil, who is a Yazidi representative from the Kurdish Democratic Party, argued that Sinjar requires an independent reconstruction fund to prevent political manipulation and ensure the transparency of funds distribution. He also urged the formation of parliamentary oversight committees to monitor the work of reconstruction funds and prevent corruption.

"We hope to review the decision of merging the two regions and to give special attention to Sinjar, the most affected area by ISIS's terror and destruction," said Khalil in an interview with Shafaq News. "There are political actors who are hindering the reconstruction of Sinjar or taking a positive step towards it."

Khalil's comments came after the Iraqi and Kurdish authorities reached an agreement in October 2020 to jointly administer Sinjar in terms of administration, security, and services. Sinjar was captured by ISIS in 2014, and its residents were subjected to a massacre before being liberated by Kurdish forces in the following year.

However, tensions between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government escalated, leading to the deployment of the Iraqi army, supported by al-Hashd al-Shaabi (PMf), in the area.

The Iraqi government also replaced the elected officials in Sinjar with new appointees, who relocated to Duhok province as Iraqi forces advanced. In addition, the Kurdistan Workers' Party formed a pro-PKK group called the Sinjar Protection Units, which receives salaries from the Iraqi government as a faction under the PMF.