A/HRC/28/18 56. Attacks allegedly perpetrated by militia affiliated to ISF were reported in Baghdad, Baquba, Kirkuk, Mosul, Samarra and Tel Afar, allegedly in revenge for attacks by ISIL. The mission could not independently verify those incidents, which require further investigation. 57. Against the background of attacks against Sunni villages in Salah ad-Din and Diyala governorates, numerous witnesses reported incidents involving illegal arrests and the taking of hostages. They allegedly occurred in Al-Hatimiya, Baquba, Dujail, Tuz Khormato and Yathrib. Some families said that they had secured the release of loved ones by paying ransoms. 58. In August and September 2014, as ISF and affiliated militia moved against ISIL in Yathrib, Salah ad-Din governorate, Sunni men from the area were allegedly systematically arrested in the village of Jami’iya and at checkpoints in Al-Hatimiya and Dujail. Victims provided consistent accounts of being ordered to hand over mobile phones, valuables and identity documents. They were blindfolded, handcuffed and taken to the Al-Bakr (Balad) airbase in Salah ad-Din governorate, where they were tortured or ill-treated for several days while being interrogated about ISIL forces and their positions in the region. 59. On the night of 8 to 9 August 2014, a militia stationed at the Youth Sports Club in Tuz Khormato town in Salah ad-Din governorate abducted up to seven Sunnis from their houses. One Sunni was brutally beaten, tortured and killed,19 while the fate of the others remains unknown. The mission received multiple reports that militia groups are running detention facilities at Al-Bakr airbase, Salah ad-Din, where torture is allegedly undertaken routinely. On 25 October 2014, for example, two Sunnis were taken from the Brigade 17 checkpoint in Dujail to Al-Bakr airbase. They were handcuffed, blindfolded and tortured for five days by beatings, kicks and electric shocks. Up to 40 men allegedly shared a cell with them and suffered the same treatment. One of their captors allegedly urged them daily to convert to Shia Islam. On 11 December, a Sunni man was abducted at the Al-Hatimiya checkpoint by fighters20 and was taken to the Al-Bakr airbase, where he was held and tortured for four days. He was released once his family had paid 6,000 United States dollars in ransom. 60. The mission gathered information from a number of victims and witnesses about an attack on 25 January 2015 against Sunni Arabs in the villages Al-Sibaya and Al-Jeri, north of Sinjar. Based on evidence gathered, it may be reasonable to conclude that the attack was perpetrated by a Yezidi armed group. Twenty-two people were allegedly shot dead, including women, children and the elderly; several others were injured. The bodies of at least six people were burnt in their homes after they had been shot. Several houses were allegedly burnt, properties were looted and villagers were allegedly ordered to hand over valuables. Witnesses reported that 17 people were abducted; their whereabouts remain unknown. Inhabitants of both villages were displaced. 61. These allegations could not be thoroughly investigated by the mission and warrant further investigation. 2. Forced displacement and preventing access to safe areas 62. Multiple accounts indicate that militia conducted operations targeting Sunni in Salah ad-Din and Diyala that resulted in forced displacement. Witnesses reported that during an operation in Al-Jami’iya, Salah ad-Din in September 2014, militia members forced Sunni civilians from their homes at gunpoint, beat them and shouted “you are all ISIL, you are 19 20 Documented in a YouTube video provided to the mission by the family. The fighters identified themselves as members of Jamaat al-Ataba militia. 13