Rebuilding from the Yazidi Genocide FROM GENOCIDE TO JUSTICE A B O U T T H E G E N O C I D E W H O A R E T H E Y A Z I D I S ? In August 2014, the world witnessed genocide. The Yazidis are a small minority indigenous to Over the course of two weeks, the Sinjar region of Mesopotamia who are united by their ethnic and Iraq was invaded by the so-called Islamic State religious identity. As an ancient monotheistic (ISIS). ISIS militants undertook a strategized religion, Yazidism shares elements with other Middle Eastern traditions, but is set apart by its campaign to ethnically cleanse Yazidis from prayer rituals, a belief in reincarnation, and the existence. central role of the Peacock Angel, Tawusi Malek, Approximately 400,000 Yazidis fled to the who is worshiped as messenger to the Yazidi god. neighboring Kurdistan Region of Iraq and tens of It is because of these unique tenets of their faith thousands took refuge on Mount Sinjar, where that Yazidis have been persecuted for centuries. they faced near starvation. The rest, unable to Yazidi history recounts seventy-three instances flee, were killed or taken into captivity and of genocide - the latest of which was conducted subjected to horrific acts of violence – by ISIS. The constant threat of persecution led enslavement, forced labor, conscription, torture, many Yazidis to settle in the northern region of and rape. Iraq (namely Sinjar), where the mountainous ISIS considered Yazidis “infidels” and ordered men terrain provides some protection. to either convert or die. Women, on the other hand, were given no choice. They were taken captive, married off to the highest bidder, sexually enslaved, “I will never forget the grief in my mother’s eyes and forced to convert. when she realized her sons had been executed – More than 6,000 women and children were taken not knowing she would face the same fate. I can captive by ISIS and over 2,800 are still missing still feel my niece’s hand being ripped out of today. Sexual violence was strategically used as a mine, as we were separated and loaded onto weapon of war and codified in ISIS manuals that explained how to traffic Yazidi women. ISIS buses like cattle. And I can still calculate what believed that violating women would destroy the my body was worth to those who bought and community from within. sold it.” - N A D I A M U R A D 400,000 Y A Z I D I S D I S P L A C E D 6,000+ W O M E N & C H I L D R E N E N S L A V E D 5,000+ M E N & O L D E R W O M E N K I L L E D T A C T I C S O F G E N O C I D E ISIS’ persecution of Yazidis was so comprehensive, it is as if they used the criteria for genocide as a guideline for how to destroy the community: Murdering men and older women en masse and filling over 80 Raping women to ensure that mass graves throughout Sinjar. children born to Yazidi women 1. would be considered Muslim, not Yazidi, under Iraq’s patrilineal 4. nationality law. Abducting women and children, enslaving girls and brainwashing boys into joining the ranks of the Destroying property, schools, terrorist group. 2. hospitals, and homes; burning farms; disabling electrical networks; and polluting water Torturing captives with sexual sources, so Yazidis would not be and physical violence, causing 5. able to survive in Sinjar. 3. irreversible trauma. FROM SURVIVORS "ISIS captured us when we were trying to reach Sinjar Mountain. At the beginning, they only separated my father from us in Sinjar. They did not take me from my mother because I was only 14 at that time. Then, they took us from Sinjar to Til-Afar. Life was so bad there. We did not have enough food [or] good shelter. After 8 months, they separated us from each other. They sold me more than 10 times to different people." - B A D Y R A "I was only ten years old at that time. They took me with other kids to a kindergarten. There, they taught us the Quran. Once, they gave us poison. We thought we died. We spent two weeks in the hospital. Finally, they made a lottery in the kindergarten. There were three things, which were marriage, death, and serving an ISIS family. Each kid got a different paper. Based on that, some were killed. Some were given to their fighters as wives. Others were chosen to be servants in their houses. I was chosen to be a servant. I - S A M A R served a house for two years." ongoing hardships PRESENT DAY The consequences of genocide have endured long after ISIS’ occupation of Sinjar. Genocide is not a singular event. It is a process of marginalization, violence, and resource deprivation. ISIS knew this; for they did not stop at destroying Yazidi lives. They also systematically dismantled agricultural lands and basic resources to prevent the community from ever returning home. While ISIS' military occupation was defeated by an international coalition in 2019, their genocide against Yazidis has yet to be stopped. 200,000 2,800 150,000 S T I L L R E T U R N E E S W O M E N & D I S P L A C E D T O S I N J A R C H I L D R E N I N N O R T H E R N S T R U G G L I N G S T I L L M I S S I N G I R A Q T O R E B U I L D L I V I N G I N L I M B O J U S T I C E D E L A Y E D Seven years after ISIS’ atrocities, the Yazidi Survivors have put themselves at great genocide is no longer front-page news. Yet, personal risk to retell accounts of genocide the humanitarian crisis persists. Hundreds of and share experiences of sexual violence. thousands of Yazidis remain in cramped They have defied taboos and faced stigma displacement camps, while those who have in the hopes that authorities would hold returned home lack electricity, clean water, their abusers accountable. Shamefully, the healthcare, education, and livelihood international community has not fulfilled its opportunities. responsibility to prosecute perpetrators. No Improvements to Sinjar’s local governance international body or Iraqi court has tried and security are prevented by political ISIS members for sexual violence or disputes between the Iraqi Federal and genocide. Kurdistan Regional governments. Although both claim sovereignty over the land, neither is willing to take responsibility for Sinjar’s reconstruction. In the vacuum of good governance, foreign-backed militias are gaining influence and destabilizing the region. Once again, the Yazidi community is paying the price. M I S S I N G B U T N O T F O R G O T T E N Of the 6,000 women and children taken into ISIS captivity, 2,800 are still missing. For them, the violence of genocide is not a memory, but a daily reality. The world has listened in horror to the accounts of “Despite everything we were subjected to survivors like Nadia Murad, but there have in captivity, our life is still difficult in been no coordinated efforts to rescue those Sinjar. Since being liberated, many of us still missing and in captivity. live in homes that are not ours because ISIS blew up our homes, burned and Thousands of survivors are mourning their relatives whose remains lie in unmarked looted our property, and stole our and mass graves. Only a handful of graves money.” - S U R V I V O R have been exhumed. For families hoping to return home to Sinjar, living among mass "We hope our brothers and sisters will be graves is unthinkable. The inability to released from ISIS captivity, and we will identify and honorably bury loved ones meet them again." magnifies the community's loss. - S U R V I V O R P E R S E R V E R I N G I N T H E F A C E O F P E R S E C U T I O N Despite ongoing hardships, the Yazidi community is working together to "Whenever I am discouraged, I rebuild their homeland, restart their lives, and advocate for accountability. only have to look at the They are eager to participate in Sinjar’s resilience of my community to local governance and security. Yazidis know that we can build a know that stabilizing the region is the better world if we pair their best way to prevent future persecution strength and innovation with and create a more peaceful world for tangible support." their children. We are here to help them - N A D I A M U R A D achieve these goals. supporting local VISIONS OF JUSTICE Nadia’s Initiative empowers the Yazidi community in their pursuit of justice. Survivors tell us that justice is twofold: R E P A I R I N G have their day in court 1. T H E P A S T A D V A N C I N G receive support that enables them to heal & 2.