Iraqi PM: Evidence of Ba'ath Regime's Heinous Crimes Continues to Surface

Iraqi PM's Media

Iraqi PM Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani says that although many years have passed since the fall of the Ba’ath regime, new evidence of its heinous crimes continues to surface following the discovery of another mass grave in Samawah deserts.

"Although many years have passed since the fall of the Ba’ath regime and its tyranny over the Iraqi people, new evidence of its heinous crimes continues to surface, bearing witness to the horrific atrocities our nation endured under dictatorship," Sudani shared on X.

"The recent discovery of a mass grave in Al-Samawah desert, containing the remains of innocent civilians—women and children from our Kurdish community—revives painful memories of the bloodshed, suffering, struggle, and enforced disappearances inflicted upon our people by the brutal, racist regime," he added.

"Glory, honor, and mercy to Iraq’s martyrs—the martyrs of injustice and the victims of the hateful dictatorship’s atrocities," he said.

A mass grave was discovered on Sunday morning, December 22, 2024, and a parliamentarian stated that the victims are Kurds from the Garmian region.

The Iraqi First Lady Shanaz Ibhrahim Ahmed reported the finding of the mass grave, which is situated in the Tel Sheikhiyah region of the Samwah desert. It was uncovered after a week of diligent effort. The victims were buried in their traditional colourful Kurdish traditional attire as shown in the photos of the mass grave, which proves that the victims are definitely Kurds. 

Karwan Yarwais, a member of the Iraqi Parliament, informed PUKMEDIA that the remains of 150 individuals, all from Garmian, including three women who were pregnant at the time, were discovered in the mass grave.

"The victims were blindfolded and shot and then buried en masse and traces of Kalashnikov bullets were found in the mass grave," Yarwais said.

Iraq's fallen Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath dictatorial regime launched the Anfal campaign in February 1988, targeting Kurdish civilians and lasting until September of that year. It is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous cases of state-sponsored mass murder during Iraq's Ba'ath regime. 

The military and regular forces, including the First Corps in Kirkuk and the Fifth Corps in Erbil, as well as the Air Force, Special Forces, Republican Guard, Commando Forces, security and intelligence services, military intelligence, and chemical and biological weapons departments, were all mobilised to carry out these operations. The Anfal atrocities killed over 182,000 Kurdish civilians, including women, children, and the elderly.

According to statistics, 270 mass graves have been discovered since Iraq's liberation, with many more still to be found. The majority of these graves are concentrated in the area between Diwaniyah, Samawah, and Najaf provinces.  



PUKMEDIA