Iraq

Voters in Iraq go to the polls on 10 October 2021.
© UNICEF/Wathiq Khuzaie

Iraq: Clock ticks on all-important elections, commitment to credibility needed

25 August 2021
Peace and Security

With just 46 days until Iraq goes to the polls, the UN Assistance Mission for the country (UNAMI) is stepping up its communications to inform voters about their conduct, Special Representative Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert told the Security Council on Wednesday, stressing that it is up to the political parties themselves to refrain from attempts to distort the results.
 

A once busy street in Baghdad, Iraq.
UNAMI

Iraq: Put torture prevention laws into practice, urges Bachelet

3 August 2021
Human Rights

 Although laws in Iraq criminalize torture and set out procedural safeguards to prevent it, a new report released on Tuesday by the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) and UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), makes clear that the practice continues in jails throughout the country. 

Yazidis who fled Sinjar Mountain re-enter Iraq from the Syrian Arab Republic. (file)
© UNICEF/Khuzaie

UN chief underlines commitment to justice for Yazidis in Iraq

3 August 2021
Peace and Security

Secretary-General António Guterres has urged the Iraqi authorities to swiftly implement a new law to assist Yazidi survivors of ISIL atrocities, the UN said on Tuesday in a statement marking seven years since the extremist group brutally targeted the religious minority and other communities. 

Baghdad, the capital of Iraq.
UNAMI

Iraq: Bomb attack on eve of Eid al-Adha, ‘terrorism knows no bounds’ 

20 July 2021
Peace and Security

Secretary-General António Guterres has strongly condemned the “horrific bomb attack targeting civilians” at a busy market in the northeast of the Iraqi capital, just before the Eid al-Adha holiday.

Manual recount of votes from 2018 national election, Baghdad International Fair, Iraq. (file)
UNAMI

Credible elections can help propel Iraq towards ‘safe and prosperous future’ 

11 May 2021
Peace and Security

A trusted electoral process with “free and wide-ranging participation” can steer Iraq towards a “safe and prosperous future”, the country’s UN envoy told the Security Council on Tuesday. 

A young boy in Iraq stands next to a car that was torched by ISIL. (file)
© UNICEF/Lindsay Mackenzie

ISIL crimes against Yazidis constitute genocide, UN investigation team finds

10 May 2021
Peace and Security

A UN team investigating ISIL atrocities in Iraq has established “clear and convincing evidence” of genocide against the Yazidi religious minority, the Security Council heard on Monday. 

Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert (left), UN Special Representative for Iraq and Deputy Representative, Irena Vojáčková-Sollorano, meet officials from the Sinjar security forces in January 2021.
UNAMI/Salar Brifkani

Transparency must rule Iraqi elections, ‘loyalties cannot be for sale’, Security Council hears

16 February 2021
Peace and Security

A deadly rocket attack on Monday night in Erbil drew condemnation from the UN envoy in Iraq, who told the Security Council on Tuesday that “such reckless attempts to inflame tensions pose grave threats” to the country’s security. 

A young boy in Iraq stands next to a car that was torched by ISIL. (file)
© UNICEF/Lindsay Mackenzie

COVID sparks resurgence of ISIL terrorists, threatening international peace and security, Security Council hears 

10 February 2021
Peace and Security

The threat to international peace and security posed by ISIL terrorist fighters is “on the rise again”, the UN counter-terrorism chief told the Security Council on Wednesday. 

File photo: Humanitarian partners distribute emergency assistance in Ibrahim Khalil village in Iraq.
OCHA/Themba Linden

Iraq urged to investigate attacks on women human rights defenders

2 October 2020
Human Rights

UN-appointed independent rights experts have urged the Iraqi authorities to investigate the murder of a female human rights defender, and the attempted killing of another, targeted “simply because they are women”.

Protesters in Liberation Square, Baghdad, the capital of Iraq.
Unsplash/Dalia Mu

Deliberate silencing of peaceful voices in Iraq ‘unacceptable’, says UN human rights chief

27 August 2020
Human Rights

A new UN report launched on Thursday highlights human rights violations and abuses that were committed during recent demonstrations in Iraq and calls for immediate action for justice.