SW News: Both France and Sweden have joined hands to probe the barbaric rights violations carried out by the Islamic State when it overran the Nineveh Plains of Iraq in 2014. During the occupation of the Islamic State, thousands of Christians and Yazidis were killed and many were forced to flee.

Now a joint team has been formed by Sweden and France to investigate the crimes committed by the militants, including the enslavement of Christian and Yazidi women and girls who were sexually exploited. The European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (Eurojust) coordinates the French and Swedish inquiry activities.

Eurojust stated that the main aim of the group is to identify the Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTF) who were involved in major international crimes such as genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, mainly against members of the Yezidi minority during the armed conflict in Syria and Iraq, to prosecute them. The team will also identify victims and witnesses of FTF crimes in Syria and Iraq.

The investigative efforts of the team will be useful to judges in the other EU Member States and other countries who seek an end to the impunity of FTFs involved in serious international crimes, including the enslavement and sexual abuse of members of the minority community.

When ISIS swept through northern Iraq in 2014, it killed over a hundred thousand Christians and Yazidis and enslaved about 10,000 women and girls, many of whom are still missing. Following the defeat of the militants in 2017, officials have encouraged Christians and Yazidis to return to their homelands. However, many remain concerned about their safety in Iraq and Syria.