ISIS Not Alone in Committing Atrocities

The barbarous acts of the Islamic State obscure the multitude of human rights violations of its adversaries

An Iraqi Shiite fighter and member of Iraq's Popular Mobilisation units supporting Iraqi government forces in the battle against the Islamic State (IS) points in the village of Albu Ajil, east of the northern city of Tikrit, on March 8, 2015 during a military operation to regain control of the Tikrit area. Some 30,000 Iraqi security forces members and allied fighters launched an operation to retake Tikrit at the beginning of March, the largest of its kind since Islamic State (IS) group forces overran swathes of territory in June. AFP PHOTO / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images

WASHINGTON—Testimony before a congressional hearing on human rights violations committed by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) painted a horrific picture of brutality and suffering.

While acknowledging the depravity of ISIS, several witnesses warned that the United States should not, at the same time, turn a blind eye to the human rights abuses and atrocities committed by its adversaries. The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (TLHRC) organized and convened the hearing on March 18.

The enemy of our enemy is not necessarily our friend.

That point was underscored two days later in a Washington Post interview with Gen. David H. Petraeus, reported on March 20. As U.S. commander of the Multinational Force—Iraq during the surge in 2007–2008, Petraeus knows intimately the sectarian problems in the region. In answer to a written question, he replied:

“I would argue that the foremost threat to Iraq’s long-term stability and the broader regional equilibrium is not the Islamic State; rather, it is Shiite militias, many backed by—and some guided by—Iran.”

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