UN raises ‘serious concern’ over unfair trials of Daesh members in Iraq

The United Nations has raised “serious concern” over what it called “unfair trials” of former members of Daesh by the Iraqi judiciary.

A spokesman for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) , Jeremy Laurence, told reporters in Geneva that a joint report was prepared by the United Nations Human Rights Office in Iraq (UNAMI) and OHCHR which covered 794 trials held between 1 May 2018 and 31 October 2019.

The report said that while judicial proceedings were “conducted in an orderly manner, were well organised, and judges were routinely prepared with investigation files … defendants had ineffective legal representation and limited possibilities to present or challenge evidence.”

Germany: Daesh threat in Iraq ‘not over’

The report added that “the over-reliance on confessions, with frequent allegations of torture that were inadequately addressed – while constituting a human rights violation in itself – further added to the concerns.”

“Prosecutions under the anti-terrorism legal framework mainly focused on membership of a terrorist organisation, without distinguishing between those who participated in violence, committed international crimes, and those who joined the Islamic State [Daesh] for survival and/or through coercion,” it said.

According to the report, some defendants were tried for “selling vegetables or preparing meals for members of the militant group”, or acting as human shields.

READ: US says no uptick in violence from Daesh in Syria, Iraq