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Simele massacre, 1933

Iraqi government forces killed thousands of Assyrians shortly after the League of Nations declined to grant the community autonomy, a massacre later cited as directly influencing the coining of the term "genocide."

What happened

In 1932, ahead of Iraqi independence, Assyrian Patriarch Mar Shimun XXI Eshai petitioned the League of Nations for an autonomous Assyrian homeland within Iraq; these demands were not granted.[1]

In August 1933, Iraqi government forces and allied irregulars killed an estimated 3,000 Assyrians across Simele and around 63 surrounding villages; approximately one third of Iraq's Assyrian population fled to Syria as a result. The massacre is widely cited as a direct influence on Raphael Lemkin's later coining of the term "genocide."[2]

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

  1. 1.

    Claim: In 1932, ahead of Iraqi independence from British mandatory administration, Assyrian Patriarch Mar Shimun XXI Eshai petitioned the League of Nations for an autonomous Assyrian homeland within Iraq, protection guarantees, and freedom to emigrate in the event of future massacres; these demands were not granted.

    • Assyrian war of independence (Wikipedia) link, Petitions to the League of Nations section. Source record
  2. 2.

    Claim: In August 1933, Iraqi government forces and allied irregulars killed an estimated 3,000 Assyrians across the town of Simele and around 63 surrounding villages in the Dohuk and Mosul districts, in what became known as the Simele massacre; approximately one third of Iraq's Assyrian population fled to Syria as a result. The massacre is widely cited as a direct influence on Raphael Lemkin's later coining of the term "genocide."

Source note

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