Sinjar residents still await compensation for war damages: Human Rights Watch

Erbil (Kurdistan 24) – "Sinjar has been the site of grave war crimes and mass displacement going back a decade, with about 183,000 Sinjaris still displaced today,” a Human Rights Watch report revealed.

“Yet despite years of waiting, not a single person from Sinjar has received the compensation payments that they are entitled to under Iraqi law for destruction of and damage to their property, we found a year ago,” the report continued.

The report highlighted that 80% of Sinjar’s infrastructure and 70% of its homes were destroyed during the conflict against ISIS between 2014 and 2017.

Without compensation, many displaced Sinjaris lack the financial resources to return home and rebuild their lost homes and businesses. Tens of thousands still live in camps across the Kurdistan Region, largely dependent on humanitarian aid.

With the federal government’s July 30 deadline to close these camps approaching, the urgency for delivering these payments has intensified.

As of last year, there were 3,500 completed compensation claims awaiting payment from the Nineveh Governorate Finance Department.

However, a representative of the Sinjar Compensation Office informed Human Rights Watch that this number has now risen to 10,000, with no payments made.

The office has also considered 26,000 other applications awaiting final approval from the Court of Appeal before sending them to the Finance Department for payment.

“We finished processing all the cases filed between 2021 and 2023, so there is no more backlog,” said Judge Ammar Mohammed, head of the Tal Afar Compensation Committee, which oversees the Sinjar sub-office. “We’ve done our job. It’s now the government’s job to pay.”

The state of the Tal Afar Compensation Office itself raises concerns. In January, a visit revealed a poorly furnished office in a rented house, with stacks of yellow folders on the floor and shelves. Every step of the process was documented on paper, raising concerns about these records' vulnerability.

“We’ve asked the government to help us digitize the process, but nothing has happened,” Judge Mohammed said. “We are worried about the files. If there is heavy rain and the office floods, the files would be damaged, and the applicant would have to start over. We don’t even have proper shelves,” Judge Mohammed said.

After the publication of the Human Rights Watch report in May 2023, the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a letter explaining measures taken by the Prime Minister’s Office to facilitate compensation payments.

These measures included simplifying security procedures, providing adequate funding for "Law No. 20," and offering logistical and human support to the Compensation Subcommittee. However, Judge Mohammed stated that none of these promises have yet been fulfilled.

“During a conference with all the Compensation Committee heads, they promised us they would remove the security clearance step for people from Sinjar, but it’s still in place,” Judge Mohammed noted.

He also mentioned that only the security check requirement proving that claimants were not previously members of the Baath Party was removed.

“I raised these issues in multiple meetings with officials at all levels of government, from the local level to the Prime Minister’s Office. Each time, the response was the same – the money was there and ready, and payments would be made soon. More than once, I was told that the money would be disbursed ‘next week.’ I waited week after week to see if people would be paid, but week after week I was disappointed,” he said.

The report also questioned why people from other Iraqi provinces receive compensation payments, while Sinjar remains an exception. Government officials cited vague “budget issues” as the reason for non-payment without providing further details.

For many Sinjaris, the failure to pay compensation claims exemplifies the federal government’s disregard for their needs and the effective marginalization of the region. The dilapidated state of the compensation office is a vivid example of this neglect.

Only one of the Sinjar residents met last year, Khalil Hassan, had returned home. “Returning to Sinjar was a decision rooted in my personal wellbeing, as I felt the camp life was no longer sustainable,” he said.

He noted that he had invested significantly in renovating his home, but it was insufficient: “I completed my compensation paperwork in mid-2022, but the payout is still pending.”

Hassan also felt the compensation offered was insufficient: “They recommended compensation of 10 million IQD ($6,800) for both my shop and house, even though I bought my house for 50 million IQD ($34,000).”

The lack of compensation, combined with the lack of services, infrastructure, and ongoing instability, has led many to fear that life in Sinjar will be worse than in the camps. One resident expressed concern: “If they pay me compensation and I rebuild my home, I can’t even be sure that it won’t be destroyed again if fighting breaks out. Sinjar just isn’t safe.”

The report concluded by urging the Iraqi government to address delays and obstacles in processing and paying compensation claims immediately. To enable the displaced to return to their homes and respect all economic rights of the people of Sinjar, the government must adopt an integrated approach, including reconstruction, rehabilitation, compensation, administration, and security.