Al-Sulaymaniyah marks Martyrs Day
Organized by the Germsir Association, the event included a Quran recitation for the victims and speeches addressing ongoing challenges such as displacement, political exclusion, and economic hardship.
Association Secretary Shehab al-Feyli said the occasion "honors past violations and affirms the community's efforts to preserve its identity and secure its rights," and called for continued recognition and justice.
Attendees urged the Kurdistan Regional Government and federal authorities to increase Feyli Kurdish representation in political institutions, citing the group's demographic size and historical contributions.
Feyli Kurds, a Shia Kurdish minority, were subjected to deportations, loss of citizenship, and enforced disappearances under Saddam Hussein's rule. Thousands were expelled to Iran, and many remain unaccounted for.
Iraq's High Criminal Court recognized these acts as genocide in 2011. The government designated April 2 as Feyli Martyrs Day and allocated land for a cemetery in their memory.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Shafaq News
an hour ago
- Shafaq News
Iraq's climate collapse: A nation at risk
2025-08-02T20:28:29+00:00 Shafaq News Iraq, once anchored by its oil wealth, now faces a more urgent threat: climate collapse fueled by drought, disappearing rivers, and rapid desertification. This escalating crisis is displacing communities, weakening institutions, straining national cohesion, and sending shockwaves through the region and global energy markets. Agriculture Under Siege The Ministry of Agriculture has banned summer rice cultivation due to critical water shortages, with advisor Mehdi Dhahir al-Qaisi explaining to Shafaq News that reduced inflows from Turkiye and Iran have made traditional crops like rice unsustainable. To conserve water, the ministry is promoting sprinkler irrigation by offering 30% subsidies and interest-free loans, though only half of the 13,000 ordered systems have arrived and just 3,000 have reached farmers. Water Restrictions and a Shrinking Economy Meanwhile, the Ministry of Water Resources has capped agricultural land at one million dunams, prioritizing drinking water, orchards, livestock, and marshes. Deputy Director Ghazwan Abdul-Amir told our agency that enforcement is tightening, though illegal farming and water theft remain widespread. With negotiations stalled with upstream countries, the United Nations warns Iraq could lose 20% of its remaining water supply by 2030. Economist Ahmed Eid cautioned that rising food imports are inflating prices and weakening the non-oil economy. 'Without a unified response, rural economies will collapse, fiscal strain will deepen, and Iraq's ability to absorb future shocks will erode,' he said. Migration, Labor Losses, and Urban Strain As agricultural land dries up, thousands are fleeing to overcrowded cities that lack the infrastructure to absorb them, with the World Bank projecting over 1 million climate-displaced Iraqis by 2050 without stronger adaptation policies. The crisis is also crushing outdoor laborers like 23-year-old Hussein Sajjad, who told Shafaq News that he loses his income every time the temperature spikes. With no labor protections or heat safety standards, Iraq could lose up to 4% of total working hours by 2030, according to the International Labour Organization—disproportionately affecting low-income and informal workers. Experts Warn of Institutional Paralysis Although the government has announced a national climate strategy, experts like Green Iraq Observatory's Omar Abdul-Latif caution that delayed implementation and insufficient funding have pushed the country deeper into a 'danger zone.' 'Iraq is not adapting to climate change but struggling to survive it,' Abdul-Latif argued. 'Institutional neglect is widening the gap between the scale of the crisis and the state's ability to respond.' Written and edited by Shafaq News staff.
Rudaw Net
2 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Iraqi committee visits Kurdistan Region to probe drone attacks
Also in Kurdistan Diverse Kurdish voices centre stage at Erbil citadel concert Erbil air is cleaner as private generators phase out, says environment board Heat kills hundreds of bees in Akre Drought forces closure of 198-year-old Sulaimani mosque A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Baghdad committee visited the Kurdistan Region on Saturday as part of its investigation into recent drone attacks, Iraqi National Security Advisor Qasim al-Araji told Rudaw. "A technical committee came to the Kurdistan Region this morning. Their job is to follow up and investigate the recent drone attacks," Araji said. There were nearly 20 drone attacks on the Kurdistan Region in the past month. One of the primary targets was oil infrastructure. The latest incident was on Wednesday when an explosive-laden drone crashed but did not explode near a village in the Makhmour district of Erbil province. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has blamed Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi) - charges strongly denied by Baghdad. "After completing the investigations, all members of the joint committee will present their recommendations to the commander-in-chief of the armed forces," Araji said. Araji met with Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on Saturday. He 'reviewed details of his recent visit to the Kurdistan Region, leading a specialized investigation delegation, to investigate the attacks that targeted oil fields,' the foreign ministry said. Hussein said it was important to identify those responsible for the attacks and to preserve Iraq's energy security. The Kurdistan Region has lost nearly 200,000 barrels of oil production due to the drone attacks, Aziz Ahmad, deputy chief of staff to KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, said in mid-July. The KRG has criticized the federal government for failing to prevent or investigate the drone threats.
Shafaq News
3 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Decade after ISIS atrocities: Yazidi families still searching for loved ones
Shafaq News – Duhok/Sinjar As Yazidis marked the anniversary of the 2014 ISIS assault on Sinjar, families renewed appeals for help to determine the fate of thousands of women, children, and men abducted during the attack. Um Barzan, a mother from Sinjar, has spent more than a decade searching for her son. 'We're desperate for international help to find out what happened to Barzan,' she told Shafaq News. In Sharya camp, south of Duhok, Khdeida Musto recalled how ISIS abducted his wife and four children while he was away from home. 'We've since found my daughter, wife, and three of my children, but one is still missing. We're not giving up.' Others, like Bahar—a mother of four—are still grappling with the aftermath of captivity. 'ISIS held me and my children for nearly two years,' she said. 'I was freed, but my husband and six relatives remain unaccounted for. We just want to know if they're alive.' Hussein al-Qaidi, Head of the KRG's Office for Kidnapped Yazidis, said that while 3,590 survivors have been rescued so far, more than 2,550 remain missing. Search efforts are ongoing with the backing of Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, he noted. The Yazidi community remains among the most devastated by ISIS crimes. More than 200,000 people are still displaced—many living in camps—and those who returned to Sinjar face limited access to services and reconstruction aid.
