Washington, DC, USA (us.gov.krd) - The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Minister of Martyrs and Anfal Affairs, Mahmood Haji Salih, completed a visit to Washington on Friday.

During the visit, Minister Salih and his delegation met with senior administration officials, members of Congress, and genocide experts. The purpose of the trip was to discuss practical steps toward finding justice for genocides in Iraq, including the Anfal Campaign and the genocide by ISIS. The Minister specifically asked the US to provide technical assistance for DNA identification for victims of genocide and mass graves.

At the US Department of State, the delegation met with Ambassador Michael Kozak, the Acting Assistant Secretary for Democracy Human Rights, Labor; Peter Shea, Director for Iraq Affairs; and Susan Notar, Senior Advisor on the Middle East team in the Office of Global Criminal Justice. They also met with USAID officials Hallam Ferguson, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Middle East, and Max Primorac, USAID Senior Advisor.

The delegation was hosted for separate meetings in Congress with Congressmen Ralph Abraham, co-Chair of the Kurdish American Congressional Caucus; Congressman Randy Abraham, co-Chairman of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission; and Congressman Gus Bilirakis, member of the International Religious Freedom Caucus.

Minister Salih met with the founder and President of Genocide Watch, Dr. Gregory Stanton. The delegation also had an opportunity for special tours of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum and Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian.

The delegation will be in New York on Monday.