Closure of camps in Iraq housing Yazidis displaced by IS will be postponed, official says

Kurdish authorities refused to implement the closure order, arguing that the areas from which the displaced people had fled – particularly the remote Sinjar district, the historical homeland of the Yazidi religious minority – were not suitable for return.

A Kurdish official said the regional government had reached an agreement with the office of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to postpone the closure until the end of this year.

The prime minister’s office has not issued a public statement on the decision. However, a Baghdad government official confirmed that the closure had been postponed.

“A committee has been formed from the central government, regional government and international organizations to assess the situation of the return of displaced persons and create the right atmosphere for their return,” he said. “The return will be voluntary and not forced.”

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information publicly.

According to the International Organization for Migration, only 43% of the more than 300,000 people displaced from Sinjar had returned as of April.

IOM mission chief Giorgi Gigauri said in a statement that returns are being hampered by “safety and security concerns, the need for reconstruction, including improved public services and availability of economic opportunities, widespread destruction of homes, the need for accountability, reparations and compensation, and the need for community reconciliation.”

In recent months, the number of returnees has increased due to the closure of camps and compensation payments. But on Tuesday, many residents of the camps in the Dohuk area had not left.

Abdul-Zahra reported from Baghdad.