Swiss Parliament officially recognizes Yezidi Genocide committed by Islamic State

BERN — In response to the brutal persecution of the Yezidi community at the hands of the Islamic State (ISIS) after it seized large swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq in 2014, governments around the world have slowly adopted legislation recognizing the atrocities as genocide.

Switzerland is the latest country to recognize the events as genocide. The Swiss Parliament passed a resolution on Tuesday formally recognizing the genocide committed by ISIS against the Yezidis in 2014. The decision was supported by 150 representatives during a parliamentary session.

Switzerland joins a growing list of nations and organizations, including Britain, Germany, Canada, the Netherlands, the European Parliament, and United Nations bodies, that have officially acknowledged the genocide against the Yezidis.

Between 2014 and 2017, during ISIS’s control of significant areas in Iraq, approximately 1,280 Yezidis were killed, and more than 1,300 children were orphaned. The militants destroyed 70 Yezidi gravesites, abducted 6,400 Yezidis. There are still over 2,700 women and children unaccounted for. In Shigur (Shengal / Sinjar) alone, over 70 mass graves and numerous individual graves have been uncovered, serving as chilling evidence of the crimes committed.

The Swiss resolution marks another step in the international effort to hold ISIS accountable and ensure justice for the Yezidi community.