A United Nations official has said that she has seen a 'price list' for child slaves that has been circulated amongst Isis fighters in Syria and Iraq.
Zainab Bangura, the UN's Special Representative of the
Secretary-General for Sexual Violence in Conflict, said that she was
given a copy of the list during a trip to Iraq in April.
The
list surfaced online in November last year, but proved difficult to
verify as genuine. Now , Bangura says she can confirm that the document
is real, after spending time in the region.Speaking
to Bloomberg, she said that girls get "peddled like barrels of petrol",
and are sometimes bought so they can be sold to their families for
thousands of dollars in ransom money.
She said that young
children, from the ages of one to nine, fetch around $165 (£106), while
adolescents and women fetch lower prices as they get older.
She
added that the slaves, often captured Yazidis, are offered to Isis
leaders first, then put up for sale to foreign buyers (often wealthy men
from other parts of the Middle East) for thousands of dollars, before
being offered to fighters for these lower prices. Last
year, Isis released a pamphlet on the treatment of female slaves, which
used justification from the Koran for a variety of appalling crimes,
such as the rape and beating of female slaves.
A video, also
released last year, showed footage of an Isis slave auction, with
featured many fighters discussing what they would be willing to pay for
various women.
The disturbing confirmation of the document's
authenticity from a UN official comes as the government pledges to
continue its military campaign against Isis for another two years.
The campaign is currently limited to aerial bombing of Isis fighters in
Iraq, but MPs will vote in September on whether to extend the range of
the mission to kill Isis members in Syria as well. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/ISIS-price-list-for-child-slaves-confirmed-as-genuine-by-UN-official-Zainab-Bangura/articleshow/48347904.cms
No comments:
Post a Comment