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Friday, 05 March 2010 |
 Amnesty International in a damning report called 'Iraq: Human rights briefing' described the human rights situation in Iraq as "grave" and said the "the civilian population continues to bear the brunt of the ongoing violence". This briefing summarises Amnesty International’s main human rights concerns in Iraq which include detention without charge or trial, torture and other ill-treatment, the extensive use of the death penalty, unfair trials, violence against women, impunity and abuses by armed groups.
In this report there are several references to the brutal suppression of Ashraf. Under the topic of "Torture, ill-treatment and other abuses by Iraqi security forces" the report refers to the brutal attack on Ashraf last summer and says: "On 28 July 2009, Iraqi security forces stormed Camp Ashraf, north of Baghdad, home to about 3,500 Iranian refugees and detained 36 residents. The 36 were subsequently reported to have been tortured, including by being beaten with batons and guns. Several people needed medical treatment for their injuries."
In section 8 of the report Amnesty International describes the attack on Ashraf in July 2009 and says: "The Iraqi government has continued to threaten Iranian refugees living in Camp Ashraf with forcible removal from the camp…The Iraqi government reportedly wanted to move Camp Ashraf residents to another camp in southern Iraq and gave the residents an ultimatum to move by 15 December 2009 or they would be moved by force. However, by late February 2010 no forced removal had taken place, although Iraqi security forces continue to make life difficult for the residents."
Amnesty International's report ends with these conclusions:
The human rights situation in Iraq remains dire and the civilian population continues to pay a heavy price for the ongoing political violence. Armed groups continue to commit attacks on civilians and other gross human rights abuses; in many cases these amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Iraqi security forces also continue to be responsible for serious human rights violations, including arbitrary detention and torture. The government has generally failed to bring those responsible of human rights violations to account for their acts. This has encouraged a widespread culture of impunity.
The latest upsurge in political violence in advance of the 7 March parliamentary elections provides a grim reminder that for millions of Iraqis the peace, security and stability that they require to be able to fully exercise their human rights remain a distant prospect, a distant hope.
It is high time that the violence should end and that the right of Iraqis to live their lives in peace and security should be recognized by all.
You can find the full text of the report here: http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/iraq
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