Four Assyrian political parties in Iraq have issued a statement concerning encroachments on the lands of Bakhetme village in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). The four parties, being the Bethnahrin Patriotic Union (Huyodo d'Beth Nahrain Athroyo, HBA), Bet-Nahrain Democratic Party, Assyrian Democratic Movement, and Assyrian Patriotic Party, declare that despite repeated appeals since 1992, the cases of encroachments on the lands and villages of the Assyrian people in the KRI remain largely unresolved. So far, there has been no positive action from the responsible government authorities, the parties state. On the contrary, their information indicates the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is making efforts to seize another 1,500 dunams of land in Bakhetme village in Nohadra (Dohuk) to distribute them as residential plots to Peshmerga fighters and government employees.

Related: Kurdish Confiscation of Assyrian Lands in North Iraq

The parties' statement adds that these lands were forcibly seized by the former dictatorial regime of Saddam Hussein in August 1983 and designated as an army camp, at which time the village residents refused the compensation offered to them. Following the March 1991 uprising and the retreat of the former regime from areas north of the 36th parallel, a demand enforced by the US-led International Coalition, the people of Bakhetme returned to cultivate their lands after liberation, and they have been cultivating them ever since.

Today, the village faces a scheme that will alter its demographics and cut off the livelihood, which largely depends on agriculture, of its Assyrian residents. It is clear from the actions and efforts by KRG agencies that the lands of Bakhetme village are not being treated in the same legal manner as other villages and areas in the KRI, since the lands have still not been formally restored to their legitimate owners. For the Bethnahrin Patriotic Union (Huyodo d'Beth Nahrain Athroyo, HBA), Bet-Nahrain Democratic Party, Assyrian Democratic Movement, and Assyrian Patriotic Party the evolved situation indicates discriminatory KRG handling of the files and the application of double standards, since all lands used by the former regime for military camps or purposes were returned to their Kurdish owners, except for the lands of this Assyrian village.

The four Assyrian parties demand the annulment of all consequences stemming from the seizure of the village's lands and the return of lands seized for military purposes by the former regime and not officially returned to their original owners. They clarify that despite a 1995 decision by the KRI parliament mandating the return to their legal owners of all lands affected by decisions of confiscation by the dissolved Revolutionary Command Council of the Ba'ath Party, and despite repeated requests by village residents and officials, the issue remains unresolved.

The statement also notes that the village residents, which remain in limbo, were recently surprised by municipal attempts to survey and plot these lands for distribution to government employees, which would lead to the confiscation of a large part of the village's property. This step harms the village's unique character and identity. The resulting demographic changes would violate the Iraqi Constitution and relevant laws, including KRI Law No. (5) of 2015 which affirms respect for owners' property rights, due process, as well as prohibits demographic change for any reason. Therefore, the four parties call on the relevant authorities to immediately halt the surveying and distribution procedures and return the lands to their original owners in accordance with applicable laws and decisions. They warned that failure to meet these demands would force the parties to pursue legal and public avenues to confront these arbitrary measures and present the file of violations to international human rights organizations.