Islamic State militants massacre hundreds of Iraqi soldiers

Armed militants from the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization massacred hundreds of captured Iraqi soldiers after the extremists attacked a military base north of the capital Baghdad in June, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).

People captured by IS. (Source: AP)

The incident at Camp Speicher, a military base once used by the US military, was one of the most brutal acts by IS in its lightning offensive to seize large swaths of northern and western Iraq.

Human Rights Watch said there was new evidence that IS militants massacred 560 to 770 soldiers at Camp Speicher near the city of Tikrit, several times more than previously announced figures.

“The scale of IS’s brutality is enough to justify these being crimes against human rights,” said Fred Abrahams, special adviser to HWR.

In mid-June, the terrorist organization claimed to have “executed” about 1,700 soldiers and military officers at Camp Speicher. The terrorists also posted pictures of Iraqi soldiers being herded into trucks, forced to lie face down in shallow ditches with their hands tied behind their backs, and then massacred by gunmen. The gruesome images and the number of people killed could not be verified at the time.

In late June, after analyzing photographs and satellite images, HWR estimated that between 160 and 190 people were killed in at least two locations between June 11 and 14.

The soldiers were listed as missing in action, prompting their families to protest in Baghdad to pressure the government for answers about their fate. On Tuesday, angry families stormed the parliament building in Baghdad’s Green Zone after scuffling with security forces, forcing authorities to hold a meeting on Wednesday about the fate of the captured soldiers.

Human Rights Watch said the new figure for soldiers killed was based on analysis of new satellite imagery, military videos and survivor testimony that confirmed three additional mass execution sites. The number of victims is likely to rise as more evidence is found.

At the parliamentary session, the victims' families accused the government of selling their sons' lives by ordering many to abandon their posts and leave the camp in civilian clothes. However, acting Defense Minister Saadoun al-Dulaimi denied any orders to abandon Camp Speicher.

Also on Wednesday, the UN envoy to Iraq called on the Iraqi government to conduct an independent and public investigation into the fate of the missing soldiers and the recovery of the bodies of those killed. The investigation “should establish the location and identity of those who may have died and make every effort to ensure the release of anyone still in detention,” said Nickolay Mladenov.

In his weekly address, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said the "perpetrators" of the massacre at Camp Speicher had been captured or killed and "security forces are tracking the remaining ones".

The Islamic State group’s offensive has stunned Iraqi security forces and the military as the extremists have advanced and taken over key cities and towns. The militants have also targeted religious minorities such as Christians and followers of the ancient Yazidi religion, displacing tens of thousands of people. Since then, IS has carved out a self-styled Islamic state in a vast area under its control straddling the Iraq-Syria border.

Earlier this August, the US launched airstrikes against IS in Iraq to help forces there fight the growing military threat.

However, on Tuesday, IS released a new video showing the execution of a second American journalist, Steven Sotloff, and warned President Obama that continued airstrikes against IS would increase the number of Western hostages killed. This video was released just 2 weeks after the execution of journalist James Foley./.

Source Vietnam+