Camp Speicher massacre

Camp Speicher massacre
Part of the Northern Iraq offensive and Persecution of Shias by the Islamic State
Picture of Camp Speicher in January of 2005, when it was still used as a United States military installation before being transferred to the Iraqi government in 2011.
Camp Speicher is located in Iraq
Camp Speicher
Camp Speicher
Location within Iraq
LocationTikrit, Iraq
Coordinates34°36′36″N 43°40′48″E / 34.61000°N 43.68000°E / 34.61000; 43.68000
Date12 June 2014; 10 years ago (12 June 2014)
TargetCadets of the Iraqi Armed Forces
Attack type
Deaths1,095–1,700[1][2]
VictimsShia Muslims
Perpetrator Islamic State
MotiveAnti-Shia sentiment

On 12 June 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) summarily executed between 1,095 and 1,700[2] Iraqi cadets near Tikrit. The killings took place during ISIL's Northern Iraq offensive, when the cadets were captured outside of Camp Speicher during their attempt to flee from the area.[3][4] At the time of the massacre, there were between 5,000 and 10,000 unarmed cadets in the vicinity of Camp Speicher,[5] and ISIL militants selected the Shia Muslims for execution. As of 2024, it remains the deadliest act of terrorism in Iraq and the second-deadliest act of terrorism in the world, surpassed only by the September 11 attacks, claimed by the US to be carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001.[6]

  1. ^ "Iraqi court sentences 24 to death over Speicher massacre". Middle East Monitor. Archived from the original on 2 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  2. ^ a b "احصائية رسمية: 1997 العدد الكلي لمفقودي مجزرتي سبايكر وبادوش". Rudaw. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  3. ^ "Five year anniversary of Camp Speicher massacre on 12th June | Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da'esh/ISIL (UNITAD)".
  4. ^ "Five years on, still no justice for Iraq's Camp Speicher victims".
  5. ^ "Survivors from the Speicher massacre: We were 4000 unarmed soldiers fell into the hands of ISIS". Buratha News Agency (in Arabic). 7 September 2014. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  6. ^ Nordland, Rod; Rubin, Alissa J. (15 June 2014). "Massacre Claim Shakes Iraq". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 28 March 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2020.