Iraqi center documents Baath-era crimes against Feyli Kurds

Shafaq News- Baghdad

The Iraqi Center for Documenting Crimes of Extremism has compiled thousands of Baath-era records detailing the systematic persecution of Feyli Kurds, its head Abbas al-Quraishi revealed on Tuesday.

Speaking to Shafaq News, al-Quraishi said that the initiative covers violations across the country —from Zakho in the north to al-Faw in the south— including crimes against Feyli Kurds, the Yazidi community, and mass killings such as the Camp Speicher massacre*. The project also documents abuses linked to ISIS and the former Baath regime, with a particular focus on Kurdish populations.

“The center aims to transform Iraq’s suffering into a verified legal and historical record, preserving evidence of violations against the Iraqi population,” he clarified and described Feyli Kurds as victims of one of the most systematic campaigns under the Baath regime, citing mass arrests, executions, forced displacement, revocation of citizenship, and property confiscation. Around 100,000 young Feyli Kurds, he estimated, were affected, with some reportedly used in minefields during the Iran-Iraq war, while thousands of families were deported to Iran after losing identity documents and assets.

Read more: Feyli Kurds: A “blood-stained” wound still awaiting justice after 46 years

According to al-Quraishi, the center has gathered materials from Baath Party and intelligence archives, transitional justice bodies, the Martyrs Foundation, and the Accountability and Justice Commission, alongside testimonies from survivors and victims’ families. Field teams have also surveyed mass grave sites across several provinces, uncovering evidence he characterized as deeply disturbing, including indications that some victims may have been buried alive.

The center operates a documentation museum displaying photographs, records, and personal belongings linked to victims, aimed at educating future generations, al-Quraishi added, stressing that building a comprehensive national archive is essential to support transitional justice, compensate victims, and preserve the memory of these crimes.

Read more: Stateless at Home — The forgotten fate of Iraq’s Feyli Kurds

* The massacre took place in June 2014, when ISIS executed around 2,000 military cadets and security personnel at Speicher Air Base in Saladin province after seizing control of the area. The extremist group released footage showing its fighters rounding up and shooting the captives at close range.