Iraq’s Interior Ministry [official website, in Arabic] has launched an investigation into human rights violations carried out against civilians by special forces while fighting the Islamic State (IS) [BBC profile] in Mosul. The allegations were initially reported [AP report] by Ali Arkady, an Iraqi photographer with Der Spiegel Magazine [official website, in German] who accompanied the Interior Ministry’s special forces team, the Emergency Response Division (ERD), a unit closely backed by a US coalition. While carrying out operations against IS, Arkady said he witnessed the killing, torture and rape of suspects. Arkady’s piece featured [RT report] photos of torture scenes that included people hanging from ceilings with their arms tied behind their backs. After being abused for days, ERD commanders would execute the detainees with a technique Arkady says the unit’s personnel learned from US instructors during military training. Brig. Gen Saad Maan, the Interior Ministry’s spokesman, said “legal measures will be applied … against wrongdoers.”

Iraqi civilians continue to be victimized by the forces fighting in Iraq. in March UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein condemned [JURIST report] the recent loss of civilian life in Mosul as a result of airstrikes and actions by IS militants. The UN reported in January that 19,266 Iraqi civilian casualties occurred in 2016 alone [JURIST report], with 6,878 killed and 12,388 wounded. Since 2014 IS has reportedly launched [JURIST report] over 19 chemical attacks against Mosul. In November UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein called for immediate action [JURIST report] for IS victims to ensure that their rights are being upheld in Iraq. That month, Amnesty International (AI) accused [JURIST report] Iraqi police forces of torturing and unlawfully killing villagers near Mosul during last year’s offensive in the city. In October AI accused Iraqi government forces of human rights abuses [JURIST report], citing them as possible revenge killings. In September the UN reported that two-thirds of those injured or killed the prior month were civilians [JURIST report]. Additionally, any military achievements must be reinforced by legal reforms [JURIST op-ed] to prevent the justification of an oppressive presence of any extremist force which will work to the detriment of the Iraqi people in future.