Brussels, 27/11/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 27 November, the European Parliament condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the systematic human rights violations and abuses of international humanitarian law resulting from the acts committed by Islamic State (IS) and associated terrorist groups, “which amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity”.
In their joint resolution on the kidnapping and mistreatment of women in Iraq, MEPs strongly condemned in particular all violence against persons based on their religious and ethnic affiliation, and violence against women specifically. They underlined that “children should be immediately reunited with their families, forced marriages and sexual abuse brought to an end, and all civilian detainees, notably women, held by IS released immediately”.
There is a “need for those responsible for such violations of human rights and international humanitarian law to be held to account”, MEPs stated. The Parliament calls on the Iraqi government to ratify the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court (ICC) “in order to allow the ICC to prosecute the war crimes and crimes against humanity” committed by IS.
The Iraqi government must also promote and protect human rights by involving all components of Iraqi society, the MEPs state, offering their support in helping the government build “a fairer, more inclusive society, including one which protects and promotes the rights of women”.
The Parliament also reiterates its calls to the European Commission and European External Action Service (EEAS) to take specific measures to address the situation of women in Iraq and guarantee their freedom and respect for their most fundamental rights, and to adopt measures to prevent the exploitation of, and abuse and violence against, women and children. (CG)