The Islamic State's reign of terror continues across Syria and Northern Iraq. The latest reports of a June prison raid may spell war crimes for ISIS Caliphate.
ISIS killed up to 670 prisoners from Badush prison in Mosul, Iraq on June 10. The group took 1000 to 1500 prisoners in trucks to "a vacant area and screened for non-Sunnis," according to United Nations human rights chief Navi Pillay.
The Sunnis loaded back onto the trucks and departed the area. ISIS militants stayed behind with the remaining prisoners and yelled insults at them. They then lined them up in four rows, ordered them to kneel and shot them. The UN based its information on the eyewitness accounts of 20 survivors and 16 witnesses to the massacre.
"Such cold-blooded, systematic and intentional killings of civilians, after singling them out for their religious affiliation may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity," Pillay said.
The Islamic State (ISIL) has conquered large swaths of land between Syria and Iraq since splitting with al-Qaeda in February. They have committed a number of heinous acts in their pursuit to create a sovereign Muslim state ruled under Islamic law.
"Grave, horrific human rights violations are being committed daily by ISIL and associated armed groups," Pillay said. "They are systematically targeting men, women and children based on their ethnic, religious or sectarian affiliation and are ruthlessly carrying out widespread ethnic and religious cleansing in the areas under their control."
ISIS forcibly recruits boys age 15 and older. They threaten (and frequently carry out) mutilation, torture or death to anyone under their control who doesn't declare Islamic creed and submit to sharia law.
"I urge the international community to ensure that the perpetrators of these vicious crimes do not enjoy impunity. Any individual committing, or assisting in the commission of international crimes, must be held accountable according to law," Pillay said.
