28.05.2008 - Source: Amnesty International

Killings by Iraqi security forces ("Annual Report 2008") [ID 23518]

"Iraqi security forces killed civilians unlawfully. In some cases, investigations were announced but their outcome was not known.

On 27 March gunmen wearing police uniforms killed 70 Sunni Arabs in the mixed town of Tal-‘Afar near Mosul, apparently in reprisal for a suicide attack by a Sunni insurgent in a Shi’a district of the town. Survivors reportedly said that the gunmen dragged men from their homes, handcuffed and blindfolded them, and then riddled them with bullets. Two days later, the government acknowledged that police had carried out the killings and 13 were reported to have been briefly detained. It was not clear whether any of them were brought to justice."

Document(s): Open document

11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Involvement of Iraqi Security Forces in extrajudicial killings in 2007 ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 23622]

"Unauthorized government agent involvement in extrajudicial killings throughout the country was widely reported. Some police units acted as "death squads" and, while there were resulting transfers and trainings, there were no criminal prosecutions by year's end. There were allegations that in May MOI First Division National Police officers committed extrajudicial killings of civilians in Baghdad while operating outside their duty area. There were no reports of active investigations of this incident at year's end. Particularly in the central and southern parts of the country, Shi'a militias--the JAM [Mahdi Army, Jaysh al-Mahdi] and the Badr Organization of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI)--used their positions in the ISF to pursue sectarian agendas. During the year authorities in Basrah, including the police chief, expressed concern about the continued prevalence of killings and kidnappings by militia members wearing police uniforms or driving police cars.

The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) received reports alleging involvement of ISF and military personnel in extrajudicial killings in Baghdad. For example, on May 4, ISF members reportedly arrested and shot 14 civilians in the Jihad neighborhood. According to local residents, on May 3, personnel wearing MOI police uniforms reportedly arrested and killed 16 individuals in the Hay al-Amel neighborhood. Subsequently, the government announced the formation of a committee to investigate this incident. No further information was available at year's end. On April 28, individuals wearing Iraqi army uniforms reportedly arrested 31 men in the Adhamiya neighborhood; five were found dead the next day in the Kesra District."

Document(s): Open document

11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Kidnappings and killings performed by members Ministry of Health and Ministry of Interior-affiliated death squads ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 23623]

"In February several high officials in the Ministry of Health (MOH), including Deputy Minister, Hakim al-Zamili, who were loyalists of Moqtada al-Sadr's JAM, were arrested and charged with organizing the killing of hundreds of Sunnis in Baghdad's hospitals, including patients, family members, and medical staff. Investigations found that under al-Zamili's direction, about 150 members of the MOH's protection service used ministry identification to move freely around Baghdad and using ambulances to ferry weapons, carried out hundreds of sectarian killings and kidnappings from 2005 to early 2007. They reportedly abducted and killed many Sunni patients at three major Baghdad hospitals, Al Yarmouk, Ibn al-Nafees, and Al Nur, as well as relatives who came to visit them or went to hospital morgues to recover their family member's bodies.

MOI-affiliated death squads targeted Sunnis and conducted kidnapping raids and killings in Baghdad and its environs. In May 2006 then Minister of Interior Bayan Jabr announced to the press the arrest of a major general and 17 other ministry employees implicated in kidnapping and "death squad activities." Jabr also noted that that the MOD found a terror group in its 16th Brigade that carried out "killings of citizens." The results of these investigations were unknown at year's end."

Document(s): Open document

11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Role of police and security apparatus in providing security in 2007 ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 23641]

"The MOI exercised its responsibilities throughout the country, except in the KRG area. These responsibilities included providing internal security through police and domestic intelligence capabilities, facilities protection, and regulating all domestic and foreign private security companies. It also had responsibility for emergency response, border enforcement, dignitary protection, firefighting, and internal monitoring of the conduct of MOI personnel. The army, under direction of the MOD, also played a part in providing domestic security. During the year the ISF operated with the support of MNF-I to provide internal security against insurgent, terrorist attacks, and extralegal militia crimes. During the year the ISF often did not prevent or respond effectively to societal violence.

The MOI security forces included several components: the 142,000-member Iraqi Police Service deployed in police stations; the 33,000-member National Police, overwhelmingly Shi'a and organized into commandos, public order, and mechanized police; the 31,000-member Border Enforcement Police, as well as the 140,000 to 150,000 Facilities Protection Service security guards employed at individual ministries. The MOI was responsible for approximately 500,000 employees, nearly 10 percent of the country's male labor force."

Document(s): Open document

11.2007 - Source: Center for Strategic and International Studies

Report on the difficulties of institution building and the reform of the Ministry of Interior ("Fixing Iraq's Internal Security Forces - Why is Reform of the Ministry of Interior so Hard?") [ID 22478]

Document(s): Open document

11.09.2007 - Source: Center for Strategic and International Studies

Summary of report on Iraqi force development ("Iraqi Force Development - Conditions for Success, Consequences of Failure") [ID 21750]

Document(s): Open document

08.2007 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Sunni Arabs targeted by Shi'ite dominated militias and security forces ("UNHCR's Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Iraqi Asylum-seekers") [ID 22704]

"Shi’ite-dominated ISF and militias, often wearing police or Special Forces uniforms,regularly target members of the Sunni population. Those targeted include also Sunni Arab refugees such as Palestinians and those from Syria and Iran, as well as former members of the Ba’ath Party and security services, who are considered supporters of the former regime and the ongoing insurgency. The fact that Shi’ite militias have infiltrated or collaborate with the ISF blurs the line between state and non-state actors."

Document(s): Open document