Netherlands and Belgium join international probe into crimes against Yazidis in Syria and Iraq

By MIKE CORDER
Associated Press

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The European Union’s judicial cooperation agency says the Netherlands and Belgium have joined an international investigation into atrocities committed against the Yazidi minority in Syria and Iraq. The Joint Investigation Team was established by France and Sweden in October 2021 and supported by The Hague-based Eurojust to identify and prosecute foreign extremists who targeted Yazidis during the armed conflict in Syria and Iraq. Eurojust announced Monday that Dutch and Belgian prosecutors have now joined the team. The investigation is one part of a broader international effort to mete out justice for atrocities targeting Yazidis, a minority considered heretics by the Islamic State militant group.