Yazidi community still suffering 12 years after IS genocide

Twelve years after the Islamic State’s 2014 massacre of thousands of Yazidis in Iraq, the humanitarian crisis endures. The International Society for Human Rights (IGFM) reports that more than 200,000 internally displaced Yazidis remain in refugee camps in the autonomous Kurdistan region, many villages are still unreconstructed, and thousands are missing or imprisoned. Ongoing insecurity, lack of jobs and the withdrawal of international aid programmes force many young Yazidis to choose between emigration and a life with no prospects. IGFM continues to provide medical aid, targeted assistance for vulnerable families and education support, citing the case of Subaz Ali, who, after years in a camp, completed medical studies through an IGFM scholarship and now works as a doctor in Kurdistan.

Legal accountability for the genocide is also advancing. German courts have convicted an Iraqi couple for enslaving and raping Yazidi girls, and the United Nations and the German Bundestag have formally recognized the atrocities as genocide. A ZDF‑Heute live program discussed the prosecutions and the current situation of Yazidis in Iraq, featuring experts and a survivor who fled the IS onslaught. The combined humanitarian and judicial efforts highlight the lingering impact of the genocide on the Yazidi community.