Dutch Minister meets with Yezidis, discusses ISIS crimes
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Dutch Minister of Justice and Security Dilan Yesilgöz-Zegerius met with the Yezidi community on Thursday to discuss justice for their persecution by ISIS.
“Victims deserve our full support in coming to terms with these horrific acts and in the fight against impunity for the perpetrators,” Yesilgöz-Zegerius tweeted.
Het is onmenselijk wat de Yezidi’s in IS-gebied is aangedaan. Hun verhalen zijn schrijnend en onverteerbaar.
— Dilan Yesilgöz - Zegerius (@DilanYesilgoz) March 18, 2022
Vandaag heb ik gesproken met een afvaardiging van de Yezidi-gemeenschap. Afgelopen jaren sprak ik al vaker met mensen uit de gemeenschap. pic.twitter.com/zrjLQ12qwh
“Efforts are being made to ensure that these crimes do not go unpunished.”
During the meeting, the Yezidis demanded “an investigation to probe the role of social media platforms inc(luding) Twitter, role in crimes against the Yezidi’s,” according to a tweet by the Dutch non-governmental organization the Netherlands Helps.
1/3 A group of Dutch Yazidis together with @whassoo met the Dutch Minister of Justice @DilanYesilgoz to share the current situation of #YazidiGenocide survivors & demand an investigation to probe the role of social media platforms inc Twitter, role in crimes against the #Yazidis. pic.twitter.com/Oim7kweox4
— NL Helpt Yezidi's (@NLHelptYezidis) March 19, 2022
Dutch Yezidi activist Wahhab Hassoo, who participated in the meeting, also told Kurdistan 24 that he hopes the “Dutch government will commit itself to not let crimes committed by Dutch ISIS members go unpunished.”
In February, legal experts and Yezidi activists discussed the possibility of prosecuting ISIS fighters involved in crimes against Yezidis in the Dutch parliament.
Read More: Dutch parliament debates prosecution of ISIS crimes with focus on Yezidis
The majority of the Dutch parliament accepted a resolution calling on the government to include crimes against the Yezidi community in the collection of evidence against ISIS fighters.
The resolution came after the Netherlands repatriated more ISIS women from Syria earlier this month. The repatriation of ISIS women has led to worries among Yezidis living in the Netherlands who suspect those women could have been involved in crimes against them.
ISIS subjected Yezidis of Sinjar to a campaign of genocide beginning in August 2014. Thousands were killed, and hundreds of thousands were displaced from their homeland.
Hans Akerboom, the Dutch Consul General in Erbil, visited the Yezidi holy temple in Lalish in Shekhan on Feb. 21 and underlined that the Netherlands will continue supporting the Yezidis persecuted by ISIS.
Read More: Dutch Consul-General visits Yezidi leadership to underline continued support
“The Netherlands remains committed to supporting the Yezidis,” Akerboom told Kurdistan 24. “The Yezidis suffered a lot at the hands of ISIS.”