In Iraq, Kurdish genocide memorials serve as solemn reminders of the extermination campaigns carried out by Saddam Hussein’s regime, particularly during the 1980s. These sites honor the victims while functioning as centers for historical documentation and education.
The most prominent memorials and museums include:
Halabja Genocide Monument and Museum: Located in Halabja, this memorial commemorates the 1988 chemical weapons attack that killed approximately 5,000 people. The site includes a museum, the victims' monument, and the Shahidan Cemetery, which contains mass graves of unidentified bodies.
Barzani Genocide Memorial and Museum: Dedicated to the disappearance and execution of 8,000 men and boys from the Barzani tribe in 1983. The complex features a museum with personal belongings, photographs, and a cemetery for remains recovered from mass graves in southern Iraq.
Anfal Memorial in Chamchamal: A significant monument and cemetery where reburial ceremonies are held for hundreds of Anfal campaign (1987-1988) victims found in the southern Iraqi deserts.
Amna Suraka Museum (Red Prison): Located in Sulaymaniyah, this former intelligence headquarters of the Saddam regime is now a museum documenting torture and genocide. It features the "Hall of Mirrors," containing 182,000 small mirrors representing each estimated victim of the Anfal campaign.
Anfal Memorial in Rizgary: A newer memorial and community center designed by the Zeller & Moye studio. It features a circular wall with 1,500 photographs of survivors and overlooks nearby mass grave sites.
Topzawa Memorial Project (Kirkuk): There is an active campaign to turn the former Topzawa military camp—which served as a detention center during the Anfal campaign—into an official national monument.
Photo © Jordi Zaragozà Anglès / Iraq 2026