Local Peace Agreements and the Return of IDPs with Perceived ISIL Affiliation in Iraq

Between 2015 and 2020, communities across Iraq signed local peace agreements (LPAs) aimed atsetting the foundations for peaceful relations between internally displaced persons (IDPs) accused of siding withISIL and their ‘home’ communities. This paper maps the characteristics of eight such LPAs and compares each withthe scholarly expectations regarding what makes a ‘good’ peace agreement. It also considers how the characteristicsof each LPA affected conditions for safe and sustainable IDP return. Overall, the study found that a failure to includeIDPs directly in LPA negotiations did not appear to compromise safe return but did potentially underminesustainability—but at the same time, indirect representation of IDPs (through tribal leadership) enabled negotiations tooccur that would otherwise be impossible; that the inclusion of women, youth and civil society contributed to thesustainability of IDP return but did not appear to influence safe return; that LPAs were an effective tool for addressingcommunity concerns around the return of IDPs but typically prioritized community concerns over IDP rights, potentiallycreating new grievances; and finally, that mechanisms to implement and monitor each LPA were important for buildingcommunity acceptance but empowered new actors and were vulnerable to co-optation.