Kurdistan Region rescues nearly 4K Yazidis since ISIS assault
Shafaq News- Duhok
Nearly 2,500 Yazidis remain missing 12 years after the ISIS genocide, despite the rescue of 3,595 abductees since the 2014 assault on Sinjar, the head of the Kurdistan Region's Office for Kidnapped Affairs said on Monday.
Hussein Al-Qaidi told Shafaq News that 6,417 Yazidis were abducted during the genocide, and the rescue office, established under the direction of Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, will remain operational until the last captive is rescued. Despite the challenges posed by the constant movement of ISIS families, which repeatedly changed the locations where abductees were held, the office continues to follow prearranged operational plans while acting immediately on any new information.
The Kurdistan Regional Government has also provided psychological support to more than 1,000 survivors. In 2015, it coordinated with Germany's state of Baden-Württemberg to transfer more than 1,000 survivors for medical treatment, while helping others secure housing inside and outside camps, obtain official documents, and meet basic living needs. Monthly financial assistance to survivors also continues, a program Al-Qaidi said has been widely welcomed by beneficiaries.
Monday marks the 12th anniversary of the ISIS assault on Sinjar, which began on Aug. 3, 2014. The offensive resulted in mass executions, abductions, and the enslavement of thousands of Yazidis, a Kurdish-speaking ethno-religious minority in Iraq. Kurdish Peshmerga forces retook the district in late 2015, and Iraqi forces declared the full liberation of Nineveh and the defeat of ISIS two years later.
Read more: Yazidis struggle to return home a decade after ISIS atrocities
