Shafaq News/ The establishment of New Kocho Village, set to replace the original Kocho town destroyed nearly a decade ago by ISIS, is rekindling hopes for the return and resettlement of displaced Yazidis.
Reconstruction efforts for the village are scheduled to commence in the coming days.
According to a report by the Associated Press, Yazidi community leaders announced plans last Thursday to create the new village with international funding to provide housing for those displaced by the massacres perpetrated by ISIS against their small, isolated religious minority.
On August 15, 2014, ISIS militants killed hundreds in Kocho alone during their takeover of the Sinjar district and enslaved thousands of Yazidis.
Yazidis Prepare to Return
The long-awaited return to Kocho is drawing closer as preparations for the construction of New Kocho Village are set to begin on September 5.
According to a report by the Associated Press, of the 1,470 people living in Kocho at the time of the ISIS assault, 1,027 were abducted, 368 were killed, and only 75 managed to escape, as reported by the Middle East Centre at the London School of Economics.
Yazidi leader Nayef Jasso confirmed that all necessary permits have been finalized and that construction on the new village will commence as scheduled. New Kocho will be located near the village of Tal Qasab, approximately 10 kilometers north of the original Kocho, which remains largely in ruins.
The report highlighted that the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the non-profit Nadia's Initiative are working together to provide housing and infrastructure in New Kocho. They hope that these efforts will encourage displaced Yazidis to return to their ancestral homeland.
However, the return of displaced Yazidis remains a complex issue. The report noted that only a small number of Yazidis have returned to their former homes. In Sinjar, the situation is dire, with extensive infrastructure damage, limited reconstruction funding, and ongoing competition among armed groups for control of the area.
Despite the defeat of ISIS in 2017, the IOM reported that only 43% of the more than 300,000 people displaced from Sinjar had returned as of April this year.
Jasso added that 133 displaced families have expressed a willingness to return and settle in New Kocho, which will feature not only residential homes but also gardens, markets, a health center, a psychological support center, and recreational areas.
The non-profit Nadia's Initiative
"Each home in the new village will be tailored to the size and needs of individual families," according to Salah Qasim, a spokesperson for Nadia's Initiative.
Elias Saleh Qasim, one of the few survivors from Kocho now living in a displacement camp in the Kurdistan Region, expressed his intent to return to his original home once the new village is completed. He noted his desire to return, but also acknowledged the challenges, as many Yazidis have since migrated and started new lives elsewhere. "It is difficult to return to an empty village," he said, adding that settling in New Kocho upon its completion would be preferable.
Fatima Ismail, another survivor residing in the same displacement camp, hopes to move to the new village as well. She described the old Kocho as a place filled with "painful memories."
The report mentioned that Ismail's husband and two children were found in a mass grave, while three other children remain missing, with empty graves awaiting them in the local cemetery.
Ismail expressed her inability to return to her old home due to the painful memories associated with it. "I can not return to my home; I cannot bear to look at the empty rooms," she said.
The report also noted that survivors continue to live in fear of ISIS. The decision to locate New Kocho at a distance from the old village aims to position it closer to the mountains where many Yazidis sought refuge during the ISIS assault.
Commemorations of the massacre, such as the recent memorial event held on Thursday, bring back painful memories for the survivors. Qasim remarked, "It feels like the first day every time there is a ceremony or event to remember these days. No matter what is done for us or how hard they try, what we witnessed was unbearably horrific and impossible to forget."