Concerned by the growing Iraqi military presence in the Yazidi village of Gir Zerik, in the southwest of Shengal, the co-speakers of the foreign policy commission of the HDP, Feleknas Uca and Hişyar Özsoy, are calling on the Iraqi government to opt for dialogue with the Yazidi population and recognise their right to keep their self-governing and self-defense structures.

The HDP said: “Since the evening of 20 April we have been closely following reports that the Iraqi army is gathering troops in and around the village of Gir Zerik in Shengal.

On 26 November 2020, on behalf of our co-chairs, we sent a letter to the President of Iraq, Mr Barham Salih, and to Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa al-Kazimi. In this letter we warned of the possible devastation that a military intervention could produce in the Shengal region, which was still traumatized by the 2014 ISIS genocide, favoured by the Iraqi troops and KDP peshmergas fleeing the area.”
The HDP continued: “We support the right of the Yazidi people in Shingal, who are victims of 74 massacres, to ensure their security as a people. The right to self-defense, which does not pose any threat to the territorial integrity of Iraq, is insurance for the Yazidis, who are still facing threats. We expect everyone to respect this legitimate right."

The HDP added: "Considering the fact that the future of Shingal, still one of the disputed enclaves according to the Iraqi Constitution, will be decided by the people of Shingal, it is clear that military interventions in this region will adversely affect the social and political stability of Iraq. We would like to make an open call on all responsible parties of Iraq to spend more efforts to resolve the problems by means of dialogue and negotiations instead of a show of military strength in Shingal. We invite all parties to take responsibility to guarantee all democratic rights of the people of Shingal, first and foremost their right to self-defense."