PUK Bloc Urges Government to Speed Up Uncovering Mass Graves

PUKMEDIA

PUK's logo with Iraqi Parliament in the bckground.

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) bloc in the Iraqi Parliament urges the Iraqi government to speed up the process of uncovering the remaining mass graves and end the sufferings of families of the Anfal victims.

PUK bloc MP Srwa Mohammed told PUKMEDIA that during their meeting with the Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al-Sudani, the PUK bloc asked him to speed up the process of uncovering the remaining mass graves.

"I submitted a letter to the Prime Minister to uncover the remaining mass graves after the last one was uncovered, which contained the remains of 150 martyrs," she said, noting that the Prime Minister approved her request and instructed the Iraqi Martyrs Foundation to carry out the task and prepare to uncover the remaining mass graves.

As the anniversary of the Anfal tragedy and the genocide crimes that the Kurdistan people endured draw near, the PUK bloc has also secured the Prime Minister's approval to build two schools for the children of the Anfal victims' families in the districts of Chamchamal and Rizgari, Sulaymaniyah.

The last mass grave was uncovered on 22 December 2024, in the Tel Sheikhiya area of al-Salman District, Muthanna Governorate. The mass grave contained the remains of 150 women and children who were martyred during the Anfal campaign of the fallen Iraqi Ba'ath regime.

Iraq's fallen Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath dictatorial regime launched the Anfal campaign in February 1988, targeting Kurdish civilians and lasting until September of that year. It is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous cases of state-sponsored mass murder during Iraq's Ba'ath regime. 

The military and regular forces, including the First Corps in Kirkuk and the Fifth Corps in Erbil, as well as the Air Force, Special Forces, Republican Guard, Commando Forces, security and intelligence services, military intelligence, and chemical and biological weapons departments, were all mobilised to carry out these operations. The Anfal atrocities killed over 182,000 Kurdish civilians, including women, children, and the elderly.

According to statistics, 270 mass graves have been discovered since Iraq's liberation, with many more still to be found. The majority of these graves are concentrated in the area between Diwaniyah, Samawah, and Najaf provinces.  



PUKMEDIA