S/PV.7804 Security Council

In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representative of Iraq to participate in this meeting. In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite Mr. Ján Kubiš, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, to participate in this meeting. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2016/885, which contains the twelfth report of the Secretary-General pursuant to paragraph 4 of Security Council resolution 2107 (2013), as well as to document S/2016/897, which contains the report of the Secretary-General pursuant to resolution 2299 (2016). I now give the floor to Mr. Kubiš. Mr. Kubiš: Let me start by congratulating the Iraqi security forces, the Peshmerga, the Popular Mobilization Forces and allied tribal and local volunteers, supported by the international community, on the steady progress in their historic battle to liberate Mosul. We honour the martyrs who have paid the highest sacrifice for a free Iraq. This liberation operation marks the beginning of the end of the so-called Da’esh caliphate in Iraq. Increased support of the civilian population for this and previous liberation operations speaks best about the fact that the liberation of Iraq is a fight of all Iraqis in their unity for the future of their country as the common house of all Iraqi people living together in justice, equality, peace and tolerance. We are witnessing the birth of a new Iraq. Let us not forget that the people of Iraq also fight on our behalf in defence of human values shared by the whole world against the terrorism and intolerance represented by Da’esh and its underpinning ideology. Today, we also stand here in solidarity with the abducted, abused and violated women and girls, their families and communities. Women and children are the first victims of Da’esh crimes, and we insist on full accountability for the human rights abuses and atrocities perpetrated by Da’esh against civilians. We call for justice for all the victims of these heinous crimes, which may amount to crimes against humanity, war crimes or genocide. Based on lessons learned from the past, the Government of Iraq and the leadership of the Iraqi security forces and the Popular Mobilization Forces have prioritized the protection of civilians in an unprecedented way in the planning and conduct of the military operations. Also, the Shia religious leadership, the Marja’iya, has issued strong statements in that regard. The campaign for Mosul’s liberation is in its twenty-fifth day and is progressing well. The progress is planned and controlled in order to avoid excessive risks, notably to the civilian population. The battle has already moved to the city of Mosul. Nevertheless, it is expected that the urban warfare may take some time, well into the harsh winter period. As expected, a desperate Da’esh has increased its terrorist activities throughout the country, mostly against civilians. It has also carried out several complex attacks in Kirkuk and Rutba, and is planning more. There has been unprecedented cooperation over the planning and conduct of the Mosul liberation operation between the Governments of Baghdad and Erbil. As confirmed during the visit of President Barzani to Baghdad, his first since 2013, and the visit of Prime Minister Al Abadi to Erbil in recent days, this cooperation and dialogue have expanded to also cover a range of political, economic and administrative issues and arrangements on which future Baghdad- Erbil relations will be built. As the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan region of Iraq, Nechirvan Barzani, has said, “We need to find a new formula for coexistence in Iraq”. Leaders of all components, communities and groups, including civil society and women, will have to address numerous grievances of the past and find a way to live together, after Da’esh, in justice and equality for all. Reconciliation at both the community and the national levels is the way to make military victories against Da’esh sustainable and to make Iraq truly peaceful and united. Encouragingly, the head of the Iraqi National Alliance, Ammar Al-Hakim, recently confirmed that the National Alliance, as the largest parliamentary bloc, is planning to submit “an important document for national compromise that considers an important political project to be implemented in conjunction with the liberation of Mosul to unify all Iraqis”. Al-Hakim has called for the building of a country of coexistence where all Iraqis feel compelled to defend the unity of their lands, peoples and democracy. He also stressed that the division of Iraq should be rejected in all circumstances, and emphasized the importance of constitutional obligations. Credible reports suggest that Da’esh has been forcing tens of thousands of women, children and men from their homes in sub-districts around Mosul and forcibly relocating civilians inside the city itself, effectively using them as human shields. Forced out at gunpoint or killed if they resist or try to flee, these people are reportedly being moved to strategic Da’esh locations, including Tall Afar. Thus far, there have been only a few sporadic reports of violations committed by pro-Government forces, mostly of individuals committing ad hoc acts of revenge against captured Da’esh fighters or persons accused of supporting Da’esh. I am nevertheless concerned about possible vengeful violence, particularly by tribes and minorities who suffered atrocities committed by Da’esh supporters, and also against their own tribal members who joined Da’esh. Since last December, the presence of Turkish troops in Camp Bashiqa, which is considered by Iraq to be a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, remains unresolved. Although both countries have endeavoured to contain the situation through diplomatic channels and bilateral mechanisms, there has been no visible progress so far. Public exchanges from Baghdad and Ankara continue to escalate. This is even more disturbing now as the Mosul liberation operation is in full swing, with all its risks and complexities. I urge the Governments of Turkey and Iraq to tone down their rhetoric and accelerate their bilateral efforts to find a mutually acceptable resolution of this problem and related issues in a way that will fully respect the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference in the internal affairs of Iraq, and to ensure that all activities that take place in Iraq are conducted in coordination and with the full agreement of the Government of Iraq, while taking into account the security concerns of both countries. As of 9 November, up to 42,000 people have been internally displaced as a result of the Mosul operation. At present, more than 20,000 people are being supported at existing camps. The remaining 30 per cent have found shelter in host communities and public facilities. A total of seven emergency sites are ready to receive 40,000 more people. At least 450,000 more spaces are under construction. In July, the humanitarian country team issued a flash appeal requesting $280 million to prepare for Mosul. Close to 80 per cent of the required amount has been received, although most funding came on line only recently, delaying preparations until nearly the start of the operation. Stabilizing the city of Mosul following its liberation will be a daunting task. Experiences from other liberated cities, notably Ramadi, point to the possibility of widespread destruction. Extensive contamination from improvised explosive devices (IEDs) is already reported. The United Nations Development Programme Funding Facility for Immediate Stabilization is coordinating with the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) to conduct rapid threat-impact assessments in key neighbourhoods and expedite clearance of IEDs in the liberated areas. Also, UNMAS is entirely reliant on bilateral contributions to the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Assistance in Mine Action. The mine action community will require $112 million in 2017, depending on the rate of at which areas are retaken. This is almost entirely unfunded at the moment. Allow me to turn now to the twelfth report of the Secretary-General on the issue of missing Kuwaiti and third-country nationals and missing Kuwaiti property, including the national archives (S/2016/885). I would like to commend the Government of Iraq, and particularly its Ministry of Defence, for bolstering activities geared towards finding missing persons, injecting much-needed energy and momentum into the file. A call for witnesses that was broadcast on local and satellite television channels by the Iraqi Ministries of Defence and Foreign Affairs on 18 September, inviting all those with information pertaining to missing Kuwaiti persons and property to come forward, has resulted in hundreds of phone calls from citizens claiming to know the whereabouts of both. That information is currently being verified. I would like to highly acknowledge the Government of Kuwait, which has consistently shown support and understanding with regard to the challenges faced by the Government of Iraq over the years.

I thank Mr. Kubiš for his briefing. The representative of Uruguay has asked for the floor to make a statement.

I thank the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Jan Kubis, for his briefing. Uruguay acknowledges his challenging work and that of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, which, working in close coordination with the Iraqi Government, is carrying out the important task of addressing the various crises currently affecting the country. The plight of the Iraqi people is deteriorating. As mentioned in the report of the Secretary-General (S/2016/897), armed conflicts, acts of violence and terrorism have continued to claim many victims. Iraq continues to face multiple and great humanitarian, political, economic and security challenges, the principal among which is the fight against terrorism. Once again, Uruguay reiterates the urgent need to face the terrorist scourge in an effective manner, within the framework of international law and together with the United Nations. Uruguay supports the efforts of the Iraqi Government, with the help of the international coalition, to combat the grave threat posed by the Islamic State to Iraq’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and its civilian population. Those responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity and, possibly, genocide committed against the civilian population must sooner or later be held accountable and brought to justice for such atrocities. Like in Syria, we are concerned about new information that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Sham may have used chemical weapons in its attacks. Uruguay vigorously condemns any use of chemical weapons against civil populations and calls for an in-depth investigation into such claims. As we have warned for many months, the retaking of Mosul has the potential to become one of the greatest humanitarian crises in recent times. In the great struggle to reclaim Mosul, the Iraqi Government must include the protection of civilians and an immediate response to the humanitarian emergency as part of its military offensives. The reconstruction of civilian infrastructure, the normal provision of services and the gradual return of internally displaced persons to their homes must be priorities for the Government. We urge the parties to the conflict to respect and protect civilians, including women, children, persons with disabilities and the elderly, respect human rights and allow access of emergency humanitarian aid, according to international humanitarian law. Lastly, we commend the intense efforts being undertaken by humanitarian agencies to protect civilians in Mosul. In that regard, we encourage them to continue their efforts. Nonetheless, it remains clear that military operations alone will not eliminate the terrorist threat in Iraq. Iraqi political leaders must overcome their differences and mutual distrust and reach consensus on a single vision for national reconciliation, without which, it will be very difficult in the future to heal the wounds, caused by so many years of conflict, from which its people continue to bleed.

I give to the floor to the representative of Iraq.

At the outset, allow me to congratulate Senegal on presiding over the Security Council this month, its tremendous efforts and the transparent manner in which it conducts the work of the Council. I commend the Russian Federation for its work during the presidency of the Council last month. I thank the Special Representative of the Secretary- General and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, Mr. Jan Kubiš, for his briefing, the efforts, dedication and excellent work of his team in Baghdad and New York. On behalf of the people and Government of Iraq, I would like to congratulate the American people on Mr. Trump’s election as President-elect of the United States of America. We pledge to work with him and his team. We also thank His Excellency President Barack Obama, Vice-President Biden and President Obama’s representative and entire team for their support to Iraq and assistance in the war on terrorism. We also thank them for their leadership of the international coalition that has supported the Iraqi armed forces so that we could liberate our territories from the clutches of the terrorist gangs of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). We also commend the logistical and financial support, the training of our armed forces and the humanitarian assistance provided by the United States, in addition to fundraising activities that raised more than $2 billion so that we could rebuild the infrastructure in those cities. The United States will remain a strong ally and friend of the Iraqi people and Government. We will work hard with the new Administration to enhance that relationship. The Iraqi Government provides all of the necessary means to ensure that the efforts of its security forces meet with success as they combat terrorism and work to retake all of the territories under the control of ISIL terrorist gangs. The Prime Minister of Iraq and Commander-in-Chief, Mr. Al Abadi, has directly supervised those operations from day one. He oversees all joint field operations and security sectors with a view to defeating the ISIL terrorist gangs. In the past few weeks, Iraqi forces, with the assistance of the international coalition, have liberated the towns of Al Qayyarah and Sharqat, in addition to other villages in the Ninawa and Salah al-Din governorates, which were under the control of ISIL terrorists. My Government commends the achievements made in Mosul by the Iraqi army, the Peshmerga, the People’s Mobilization Forces and the tribal forces, through the joint operation command and with the assistance of the international coalition. They have been victorious in liberating most villages and towns on the periphery of Mosul and have made incursions into the Left Bank. They have liberated a number of neighbourhoods in the centre of the city, and work assiduously to demine areas in preparation for the return of internally displaced persons. More than 900,000 Iraqis were able to return to their homes in areas that were liberated from ISIL. That was made possible with financial support from the international coalition. The areas were secured before the return of internally displace persons. That is in addition to providing jobs and services so that normalcy could be restored. In Tikrit, 95 per cent of the population has returned. More than 200,000 citizens have returned to their homes in Ramadi. More than 90,000 citizens have returned to Fallujah. The Iraqi House of Representatives voted against the incursion of Kurdish forces into Iraq’s territory and rejects the presence of any forces on Iraqi territory without the approval of the central Government. It considers the Turkish forces in Camp Bashiqa to be aggressive forces of occupation and has given instructions to have them thrown out of Iraqi territory if they do not heed Iraq’s calls. We also rejected the Turkish Parliament’s extension of the presence of those forces. Furthermore, we condemn the racist statements of the Turkish Prime Minister, which gave rise to sedition among the Iraqi people. He maliciously attempted to undermine Iraq, which is winning in its fight against the ISIL terrorist gangs, who receive support in the form of logistics, human resources, funding and health care from Ankara, which is trading in our artefacts and oil with with ISIL terrorist groups. We have called on the Council to take immediate steps to throw the Turkish forces out of our territory. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Al-Jaafari, in his letter dated 14 October 2016, informed the President of the Security Council that we reserve the right to act in self-defence and to apply the rules of engagement with the aggressive Turkish forces in locations that are close to our points of engagement with ISIL. Iraq rejects the provocative statements made by Turkish leaders against Iraq and their flagrant intervention and occupation of Iraqi territory. Iraq reaffirms the historic links between the peoples of Turkey and Iraq, but we reject these statements, which have become more explicit and clearly indicate the intentions of Ankara officials who claim that the Iraqi cities of Kirkuk and Mosul were once Turkish cities. The Security Council must firmly counter these expansionist expressions of greed against a State that is a founding Member of the United Nations and a country with full sovereignty. We urge the countries of the world to implement resolutions 2170 (2014), 2178 (2014), 2199 (2015) and 2253 (2015), in particular with regard to stopping the flow of foreign terrorist fighters from more than 120 States Members of the United Nations. Efforts must be made to staunch the funding and recruitment of foreign terrorist fighters and the logistical support provided to them, including weapons, food and non-food stuff, medical equipment, communication, transportation and weapons, in particular the material used in the manufacturing of improvised explosive devices and landmines from neighbouring countries. The Security Council sanctions committee should undertake its role to limit the capacities of ISIL terrorist gangs, dry up their sources of funding and monitor the countries that provide funding, support and arms to the ISIL terrorist gangs, which engage in cross-border trade, in particular in Iraqi oil and artefacts. Iraq is working with its friends and partners to identify possible options for collecting and archiving evidence on ISIL crimes and is strengthening its national capacity in this regard. We value the efforts of the Counter-Terrorism Committee and the Counter- Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, which have identified the main areas of capacity-building in Iraq in the field of combatting terrorism through their visi, in September 2015 and successive meetings, in particular the meeting held in Baghdad on 25 October, with a view to helping the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq and the relevant Iraqi authorities and to assisting and coordinating the efforts of all stakeholders in the area of technical support to Iraq in countering terrorism. The people and the Government of Iraq thank all countries of the international coalition, in particular the United States of America, the countries of the European Union and others that are not part of the international coalition. They have combatted terrorism and provided military and logistical support to the Iraqi security forces in the framework of respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Iraq and in full cooperation with its security forces. We value their contribution to restoring stability and rebuilding areas that have been liberated from ISIL so that we could alleviate the humanitarian suffering of internally displaced persons through demining activities and the removal of ordinances, in addition to the provision of basic support services. We call on Member States to fund their programmes in Iraq. We continue to promote our relations with neighbouring and Arab States, in particular the State of Kuwait, Jordan, Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in addition to our continued communication with the Syrian Government. The Government of Iraq is committed to strive tirelessly for progress on the issue of the missing citizens and archives of Kuwait. The national and joint committees are meeting with witnesses in order to gain a greater understanding of the plight of the missing citizens of Kuwait and other States. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defence broadcast on local and satellite television and use other means of media to atttract more witnesses. Field visits are carried out in order to obtain more reliable information and achieve tangible results in locating the burial sites of the missing persons and Kuwaiti prisoners. We have held many joint technical meetings, excavations have been undertaken and witnesses interviewed. From 14 to 18 July, we excavated 120 locations in Karbala, but found no human remains. The plan of the Ministry of Defence of Iraq is to carry out excavations in Khamisiyah, Radwaniyah, Ayn al-Tamr and Sulaymaniyah, as well as in another location in Salman Pak. With a view to promoting brotherly relations with Kuwait, we have held, in New York from 24 to 28 October, a joint technical workshop on the new maps of the internationally acknowledged boundaries between Iraq and Kuwait. The workshop was held under the supervision of the United Nations. The two delegations have reached an agreement to start an 18-month project for the creation of new maps. Iraq appreciates the genuine efforts of the United States of America and the Russian Federation to reach a comprehensive solution in Syria for the Syrian people who have suffered for six years from terrorism, destruction, killings and displacement. There must be communication to reach an intra-Syrian solution that is satisfactory to all parties. There must be an end to the terrorist gangs — and the international and regional support they receive — and the recruitment of terrorists. We call on Syria’s neighbours to respect their boundaries. They must close the borders to the terrorists and should not provide them with logistical support as such actions would be in violation of Security Council resolutions. Iraq notes with satisfaction the relocation of the inhabitants of Camp Liberty to other States. In that regard, we value the efforts of Ms. Jane Holl Lute of the United States of America and the Republic of Albania for facilitating that process and carrying it through to its completion. In conclusion, we thank the Special Representative Mr. Ján Kubiš and his team for their efforts and for the advice they provide to the Iraqi Government. We are also grateful for the activities of United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq for an Iraq that is stable, unified and free from terrorism.

I now invite Council members to informal consultations to continue our discussion on the subject.