Today marks the second year after the enormous displacement of thousands of people in Northern Iraq fleeing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). On August 3rd 2014, thousands of civilians were killed or kidnapped in the area of Sinjar mountain, located in Ninewa Province.
Most victims belong to the Yezidi community, a vulnerable ethnic-religious minority in Iraq. At this moment, at least 3000 Yezidi women remain in captivity and are held as sex slaves in ISIS held territory. Various commemorations are organized in central and Kurdish Iraq today, pressing the need not to forget and step up support for the many IDPs all over the country, who are unable to return to their homes. Although ISIS formally retreated from most areas in Sinjar, continuous violence between competing parties is preventing meaningful reconciliation or reconstruction efforts. For more information see the recent report on Sinjar.