TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran's envoy to the UN offices in Geneva Mohsen Naziri Asl, whose country chairs the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), underlined the block's condemnation of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), and urged the UN Human Rights Council to take tough action against the terrorist group's crimes in Iraq.
The Iranian envoy made the remarks in the capacity of the head of the NAM members at a special meeting of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHCR) on Iraq.

He expressed grave concern over the increased and organized violation of human rights by the ISIL in Iraq and other regions, and condemned the massacre of women, children, minorities and prisoners in Iraq, ethnic and religious cleansing and destruction of the religious sites by the terrorist group and other affiliated groups as instances of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

"The NAM believes that the trans-regional nature of the ISIL and other affiliated groups and their crimes are a threat to regional peace and stability and their continuation will endanger peace and security in the region and the world," he added.

Stressing that nothing can justify such inhuman crimes, Naziri Asl reminded all governments and international actors of their undertakings and avoid extending political, religious or any other form of support to the terrorist groups.

The UNHRC on Monday debated demands of several countries, including Iran, for an emergency mission to Iraq to investigate "atrocities" committed by the ISIL.

The special session came at the request of Iraq itself, with support from countries and blocs including Iran, the Arab League, the European Union, and the United States.

Diplomats from the council's 47 member states discussed a draft resolution condemning "in the strongest possible terms systematic violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law resulting from the terrorist acts committed by the ISIL and associated groups."

The ISIL, who had already occupied parts of Syria, launched an offensive in Iraq in June and rapidly seized much of its Sunni heartland, declaring a "caliphate" in a region straddling the two conflict-torn countries.

Their actions since then in several provinces of Iraq "may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity," the draft resolution said, condemning "all violence against people based on their religious or ethnic affiliation as well as violence against women and children."

The text calls on the office of the UN's brand new High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jordan's Prince Zeid al-Hussein, to dispatch investigators to Iraq to probe abuses carried out by the group.

Among these atrocities are "unlawful killing, deliberate targeting of civilians, forced conversions, targeted persecution of individuals on the basis of their religion or belief (and) acts of violence against members of ethnic and religious minorities."

The investigators would be required to give an update to the Human Rights Council at its next regular session which starts next week.

A full report would be expected at the council's most important annual session, scheduled for next February and March.

The text also urges the international community to "strengthen their efforts in assisting Iraq in restoring peace, stability and security to the areas controlled by the ISIL and associated groups."

More than 1.6 million people have been displaced so far this year by the violence ravaging Iraq, with 850,000 fleeing their homes in August alone.

By Fars News Agency

 

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