In August 2014, the exactions of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS) led to the massacre, kidnapping (mainly of women and children) and forced conversion of every Yezidi. Eventually, religious and cultural sites as well as entire villages have been destroyed. In the Sinjar district alone, 400,000 Yezidis have been forcibly displaced.

The village of Siba, in the south of Sinjar, was one of the areas hardest hit by the attacks. Siba had a population of around 20,000 to 26,000 before August 2014. All the inhabitants of this village were killed, abducted or forcibly displaced. After living for almost 10 years in IDP camps in Duhok, Siba’s inhabitants are finally returning to these destroyed areas. These returnees include many Yezidi Survivors and victims of sexual and gender-based violence, orphans and female heads of household.

Siba, like other areas of Sinjar, has not yet been rebuilt. As a result, returnees have little or no access to essential services such as water, electricity, education, medical care and mental health. Emergency humanitarian aid is therefore urgently needed to support the return of Survivor families.

→ 50 Survivors and their families supported

Stand Speak Rise Up! is contributing to this emergency humanitarian aid project for 50 Yezidi Survivors families in the village of Siba. This assistance may take the form of food and non-food items, but also small-scale cash assistance or referral for medical and mental health care.

The project has three main objectives:

• Identify 50 of the most vulnerable families who have returned to Siba (based on their victim status, health and standard of living).
• Provide 50 identified families with direct humanitarian assistance
• Produce a short video on Siba to raise awareness of the situation in the village and in light of the 10th anniversary of the Yezidi genocide.