UNITED NATIONS

The United Nations recently provided a weeklong training session for Iraqi judges and prosecutors in international criminal law for trying Daesh/ISIS members for committing crimes against humanity and war crimes. 

The head of the United Nations Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da’esh/ISIL (UNITAD) told the Security Council on Monday that 19 judges from Iraq were trained to investigate and prosecute members of the terror group.

''This is critical to provide technical assistance to judges on international criminal law and help ensure a sustainable capacity at the practitioners level to investigate and prosecute ISIL members for the crimes they committed in Iraq in fair and evidence-based trials in line with international standards,'' said Christian Ritscher.

The training was hosted by the International Nuremberg Principles Academy in Germany in November, the first of its kind at this scale, said Ritscher.

The UN team said in its latest report that the extremist group committed crimes against humanity and war crimes including the seizing of properties, looting and destruction of cultural and religious heritage, sexual violence, enslavement and forcible religious conversions of members of the Christian community.

The team's investigations into the development and use of chemical and biological weapons and attacks on the Yazidi and Sunni communities by Deash/ISIS have notably progressed, said Ritscher.

The terror group manufactured and produced chemical rockets and mortars, ammunition warheads and improvised explosive devices, according to the report.

Deash/ISIS seized vast swathes of territory in Iraq in Syria and declared a self-styled caliphate in 2014.

The terrorist group suffered key losses in 2017 but it still remains a threat with an estimated 10,000 fighters operating in the area, according to the UN.