Group of 36 Yazidis rescued from IS in Iraq
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 1 May 2017 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Group of 36 Yazidis rescued from IS in Iraq, 1 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/59818d4ba.html [accessed 5 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
May 01, 2017 06:21 GMT
Yazidis gather at the shrine of Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir to celebrate their New Year with the lighting of candles in Lalish, north of Mosul, Iraq, on April 19.
The United Nations says a group of 36 Yazidis have been rescued in Iraq after three years of "slavery" under the rule of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group.
UN humanitarian coordinator for Iraq Lise Grande said that since April 28, when they were rescued, the women and girls from the group had been receiving lodging, clothing, medical, and psychological aid in Duhok, a Kurdish city north of Mosul.
Thousands of Yazidi women and girls were abducted, tortured, and sexually abused by IS fighters after the militants rounded up Yazidis around the town of Sinjar in northwestern Iraq in 2014.
While some have escaped, as many as 3,500 remain in captivity.
The Yazidi faith has elements of Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Islam. The IS group considers them "devil worshippers."
Most of the Yazidi population, numbering around half a million, remains displaced in camps inside the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq.
Based on reporting by Reuters and dpa
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
