More than a decade after ISIS destroyed Shingal, Germany is urging Iraq to speed up reconstruction of the Ezidi homeland. Despite new laws and aid projects, most Ezidis remain displaced, and rebuilding has stalled amid political tensions and insecurity.
On August 3, 2014, the Ezidi people of Sinjar were targeted for extermination by ISIS. Thousands were killed, enslaved, and displaced. The genocide aimed to erase not only lives, but identity, culture, and the ancient faith of Sharfadin.
Eleven years later, justice remains out of reach. Sinjar is still unsafe. Survivors are still waiting. And Iraq has yet to formally recognize the genocide—blocked by those who try to claim the Ezidis as their own.
We remember the victims.
We name the truth.
And we will not stop until justice is done and our people can return home safely. Ezidi Times will continue to speak. Loudly. Relentlessly. Truthfully.
Eleven years after the Ezidi genocide, survivors are still waiting—for justice, for reparations, and for meaningful support. This event in Washington, DC brought Ezidi voices and policymakers together to ask: what will it take to finally move from commemoration to action?
The Imperial War Museum in London opened Unsilenced: Sexual Violence in Conflict, the UK’s first major exhibition on wartime sexual violence, running through November 2. It includes testimony and artefacts from Ezidi women enslaved by ISIS, alongside other global cases, raising awareness of survivors’ struggle for justice. The Free Ezidi Foundation contributed to the exhibition.
The abrupt suspension of US aid to Iraq has left thousands of Ezidi genocide survivors stranded in displacement camps, stripped of vital mental health, protection, and humanitarian services.
Earlier this year, the United States dismantled its foreign aid agency, USAID, cutting billions of dollars in humanitarian and development support in Iraq. This decision has already left some of Iraq’s most vulnerable—like the Ezidi people of Sinjar—at risk of losing critical services essential to their survival and recovery.
A new Sky News documentary reveals the devastating reality that, ten years after the Ezidi genocide, many Ezidi women remain enslaved in ISIS detention camps. Titled 10 Years of Darkness: ISIS & The Ezidis, the documentary, led by Sky News special correspondent Alex Crawford, provides an in-depth look at the Read more
Many Ezidis remain unable to return to their homeland in Sinjar due to ongoing insecurity, political tensions, and the destruction left behind. Thousands continue to live in camps with limited access to education, healthcare, and employment opportunities. Even those who have managed to return face immense hardships, with homes in ruins, infrastructure in poor condition, and economic instability making survival difficult. Justice remains elusive, as many perpetrators of the genocide are still free, and international attention has largely faded, leaving survivors feeling abandoned.
A peaceful demonstration was held in Bonn on December 9-10, 2024, marking the 10th anniversary of silence after the Ezidi genocide. Organized by Ezidi activists, the event included cultural performances, religious hymns, and speeches advocating for justice and international action. A document calling for genocide prevention was sent to the UN. Solidarity actions also took place in Iraq, highlighting the ongoing struggle of the Ezidi people for justice and recognition.
In 2014, ISIS launched a brutal campaign against the Ezidis in Shingal (Sinjar), in northern Iraq. Thousands of Ezidi men, boys, and elderly women were killed, while women and girls were abducted, sold into sexual slavery, and subjected to systematic and organised abuse. Boys were forced to become child soldiers. Read more
Malala shared her admiration for Mediha’s courage and her desire to bring attention to the plight of Ezidi women and girls. Mediha, who has looked up to Malala as a source of inspiration, expressed her hope that her film would serve as a platform for the voices of Ezidi survivors. “I want to make something for my people”.
The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, in partnership with Yazda, hosted the “Nobody’s Listening” Virtual Reality (VR) Exhibition this week to mark the 10th anniversary of the Yezidi genocide. This exhibition brings to light the horrific atrocities committed by ISIS against the Ezidi people and serves as both a tribute to Read more