On Tuesday, hundreds of Yazidis gathered in the village of Kocho in Sinjar (Shengal), a town in Iraq’s Nineveh Governorate, to mark the ninth anniversary of the massacres, a grim reminder of the systematic killing and enslavement by the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2014. Families and relatives of the victims reiterated their calls for justice and reflected on the tragedy that unfolded over 12 days of terror.
The entire village of Kocho was subjected to one of the most horrific chapters in the ISIS offensive against the Yazidi-majority town of Shengal. In early August 2014, ISIS fighters placed the population under siege. Faced with an initial demand to convert to Islam or face execution, community leaders entered into frantic negotiations to find a way for the villagers to leave safely. On 15 August 2014, ISIS rounded up and massacred the town’s men, boys and elderly women; the remaining women and girls were abducted and sold into sexual slavery.
The United Nations Investigation Unit (UNITAD) subsequently located and recovered 17 mass grave sites in and outside of the rural area. Nine years on, the remains of more than 300 victims remain unidentified. Survivors, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Nadia Murad, have called on the Iraqi government to step up its efforts. The Kurdish region has also set up an office to rescue kidnapped Yazidis since 2014, and has rescued more than 3,500 so far.
In addition to the commemoration, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Nadia’s Initiative (NI) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are working together to scale up support for Yazidi survivors of genocide. The collaboration will help survivors access durable solutions through the construction of new housing units near the Old City, as well as other tailored activities to help families feel safe and supported in their recovery.
The project is seen as a critical step in enabling the dignified return of displaced members of the Kocho community and facilitating the rebuilding of a dignified life. The trauma and destruction of homes, loss of livelihoods and lack of essential services are clear obstacles to the return of displaced populations across Iraq.
The commemoration of the Yazidi community will also be supported through the establishment of memorials and measures to protect the cemetery where the remains of those exhumed from the mass graves of Kocho are now being reburied.
