ISIS siege of Sinjar (Şengal) follows 2014 Mosul capture

In the summer of 2014, the Islamic State (Daesh) seized Mosul, triggering a rapid advance toward the Sinjar (Şengal) region in northern Iraq. Within weeks the group surrounded Yazidi villages, initiating a campaign that later was recognized as genocide.

Investigations by the Iraqi Human Rights Commission, the Iraqi Parliament and UNAMI documented secret agreements between Daesh commanders and local Arab tribal leaders, who facilitated the militants' entry by providing maps of Yazidi homes. Kurdish Peshmerga forces withdrew from strategic points without resistance, leaving weapons that were later used against the Yazidis. The reports detail how these collaborations enabled the mass killings and abductions of the Yazidi community during the siege.