5 days ago
Feyli community calls on Iraq to act on genocide recognition
Shafaq News – Baghdad
Iraqi lawmakers, activists, and Feyli Kurdish representatives convened in Baghdad on Saturday to demand urgent action to restore the long-denied rights of the Feyli community, citing decades of forced displacement, property confiscation, and continued marginalization.
The Member of the Feyli Front Sara Hussein underscored the community's historical suffering under previous regimes, including mass displacement and executions. Despite political change in Iraq, most Feylis have yet to regain their seized assets or receive compensation, she told Shafaq News.
'Today, we are still marginalized. Parliamentarians and officials have made efforts to implement laws protecting our rights, but bureaucratic hurdles and overlapping jurisdictions continue to block Property Restitution Law,' she stated, urging parliament to prioritize Article 140 in the next legislative session.
Hussein also highlighted the neglect facing the Feyli language, warning that it risks extinction without serious cultural revival efforts. 'The Feyli language is distinct from Kurdish and holds unique cultural and social value.'
Generational trauma and official recognition
According to community data, more than 22,000 young Feylis went missing in the 1980s, and some 5,000 merchants were reportedly buried alive. Nearly 600,000 were deported from Iraq, with only about 10% managing to recover their properties or secure compensation.
In 2010, Iraq's Supreme Criminal Court recognized the persecution of Feyli Kurds—including forced disappearances and property confiscations—as acts of genocide.
Additionally, the Head of the Feyli Women's League Sabah Nur al-Din stressed the importance of raising awareness through such symposiums, emphasizing the need for young MPs to champion the community's rights.
