Dr. Saad Salloum: What is the significance of earning a degree in Sociology from The American University in Washington?
Nadia Murad: Completing my studies was something I wanted to do because I know that both myself and the survivors of Daesh’s captivity deserve a normal life. We are more than stories of suffering and trauma. It is a message that Daesh and its terrorist ideology cannot break me, nor other Yazidi women. I also hope that finishing my studies will encourage other survivors of captivity to pursue their education and equip themselves with knowledge to break down barriers. I believe that education can help me, as well as others, share our stories and those of the genocide on a larger scale.
Dr. Saad Salloum: In my research on Pope Francis’s visit, I discovered that he decided to visit Iraq after reading your memoir The Last Girl and learning about the tragedy of the Yazidi community. Do you think his visit had a positive impact on minority rights in Iraq and the rights of Yazidis?
Nadia Murad: I am grateful to His Holiness Pope Francis for reading my memoir and deciding to visit Iraq. I believe Pope Francis is a man of peace and compassion. I am proud to have met him several times. Each time, he listens to me, shares my story, and speaks out about conflict-related sexual violence. He gives me hope.
I think religious leaders have a responsibility to condemn terrorism and religious persecution, and to encourage coexistence among different religious communities. I have also met other religious leaders, including Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb of Al-Azhar University of Cairo (Egypt), and I hope that Islamic world leaders will take a stand and speak more about the violence against Yazidis and other minorities in Iraq and the Middle Eastregion. Religious leaders in our region can follow Pope Francis’s example by publicly and clearly condemning violence against Yazidis and violence against women.
Dr. Saad Salloum: How did the idea for Nadia’s Initiative, founded in 2018 after you received the Nobel Peace Prize, come about?
Nadia Murad: The idea for Nadia’s Initiative arose from my personal experience. My peaceful life was brutally interrupted in 2014 when Daesh attacked my homeland in Sinjar with the goal of ethnically cleansing all Yazidis from Iraq. During their genocidal campaign, Daesh massacred, enslaved, and displaced hundreds of thousands of Yazidis. I was separated from my family and friends. My mother and six of my brothers are among the thousands of people killed by this terrorist group Daesh and thrown into mass graves—only the bodies of two of my brothers have been identified to date. I was abducted and forced into sexual slavery. However, I managed to escape and reunite with what remained of my family in a displaced persons camp.
Despite the trauma of this experience and the stigma associated with sexual violence, I chose to share my story to raise public awareness about the atrocities suffered by the Yazidis.
Dr. Saad Salloum: What distinguishes NI from other organisations working on behalf of the Yazidi cause?
Nadia Murad: What sets our organisation apart is that it is led by survivors. While there are many organisations working on behalf of the Yazidi cause, NI is the only one led by a Yazidi survivor of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV).
As well, NI’s programmatic work focuses exclusively on the Sinjar region, the homeland of the Yazidis. This choice is deliberate, as NI’s programs aim to facilitate the safe return of Yazidis to Sinjar while supporting them in rebuilding their lives after the genocide. Many organisations working on the Yazidi issue concentrate their efforts on Yazidis living in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in the Kurdistan region. NI has chosen not to follow this path, believing that the camps do not represent a sustainable long-term solution. Furthermore, NI’s team in Iraq is entirely composed of Yazidis from Sinjar. As a result, NI is in a unique position to facilitate the reconstruction of Sinjar due to its deep knowledge and understanding of the region.
NI’s work is both local and global. While its programs focus on the Sinjar region, its advocacy, under my leadership, has a global scope. It is also crucial for NI to maintain a position of political neutrality. In such a politicised and sectarian environment as Iraq, NI does everything possible to remain politically neutral. This allows the organisation to focus on the needs of survivors and the local community in our programs, while speaking truthfully to authorities in our advocacy. NI’s advocacy efforts are thoughtful and strategic, always mindful of the potential impact on the Yazidi community and survivors on a global scale (i.e., their safety, well-being, and recovery).
Dr. Saad Salloum: I visited Sinjar a week ago and saw NI’s projects and their impact throughout. Could you summarise the main activities undertaken by the initiative or those that have seen notable success in Sinjar?
Nadia Murad: The work of the Initiative has significantly evolved in Sinjar, growing from three small projects in 2018 to over 130 projects and community interventions by early 2024. These activities have expanded into various areas of development, including:
- The empowerment of women, with support provided to female survivors for starting small businesses, psychological and social support, and training in advocacy and leadership.
- Collaboration with the Global Fund for Survivors which has enabled the provision of temporary compensation to over 1,000 survivors in Sinjar and Duhok.
- Agricultural rehabilitation including the revitalisation of dozens of individual farms and the provision of tools, irrigation equipment, seeds, and seedlings to farmers.
- Improving electrical infrastructure in collaboration with the local electricity service to restore power to several villages in southern Sinjar that had been without electricity for years.
- Enhancing water, sanitation, and hygiene by building new water infrastructure across Sinjar and providing emergency water tanks to villages suffering from severe shortages.
- Refurbishing and building over 60 schools throughout the Sinjar region and training nearly 500 volunteer teachers.
- Restoring several hospitals and primary care centres in the region, adding new surgical and maternal care units to existing health facilities.
These projects aim to support the reconstruction and sustainable development of Sinjar while addressing the immediate needs of survivors and the local community.
Additionally, we have rebuilt significant Yazidi temples and other heritage sites destroyed by Daesh. We have also undertaken various memorial projects, including the Kocho Cemetery and the recently inaugurated Yazidi Genocide Memorial.
Dr. Saad Salloum: Indeed, these actions are remarkable and address the gap left by the state’s inaction in the reconstruction of Sinjar. On a global scale, what are the main aspects of NI’s work?
Nadia Murad: The advocacy work undertaken by Nadia’s Initiative has a global reach and generally focuses on gender equality, justice, accountability, security, and genocide prevention. This includes efforts to end the use of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) as a weapon of war, ensuring survivors’ voices are heard, and seeking justice by striving to hold perpetrators accountable for their atrocities.
Some of the most notable international aspects of NI’s work include collaborating with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Denis Mukwege to establish the Global Fund for Survivors. This global institution provides temporary compensation programs for survivors of CRSV.
NI has also worked with partners to develop and implement the Murad Code, a global initiative aimed at creating and supporting a community of best practices for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence.
Additionally, NI’s advocacy and legislative work on the global stage has led to international legal proceedings for genocide and crimes against humanity.
Dr. Saad Salloum: How do you view the Yazidi community ten years after the genocide? What has changed, and what have been the accomplishments?
Nadia Murad: Nearly ten years after the onset of the genocide, Sinjar has been liberated, but the Yazidi community is still struggling to recover and rebuild. In 2017, the region became stable and rehabilitable after coalition forces declared the defeat of ISIS. However, progress has been limited since then. The remnants of the conflict, a tense political environment, growing local militias, and other security threats have prevented the region from receiving comprehensive development aid.
For several years, humanitarian agencies were slow to intervene in the region due to limited access, the need for permits from the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi government, as well as the fragile conditions created by new militias. Additionally, humanitarian funds have often been directed to other parts of Iraq, leaving Sinjar without the necessary resources for its recovery.
Despite the fragile nature of Sinjar, the return of Yazidis to the region has gradually increased over the past few years. With the stabilisation of the region and the efforts of NGOs to improve the situation in Sinjar, more than 150,000 Yazidis have returned to their homes, although services and opportunities are still insufficient.
Since its establishment in 2018, Nadia’s Initiative has carried out over 130 rehabilitation projects in Sinjar, positively impacting the lives of approximately 450,000 beneficiaries. These projects include:
– 8 projects focused on water, sanitation, and hygiene rehabilitation,
– 14 projects for cultural heritage preservation,
– 20 projects for women’s empowerment,
– 20 health care projects,
– 23 projects aimed at employment and livelihood restoration,
– 49 projects designed to expand access to education.
These efforts have significantly contributed to the rehabilitation of Sinjar and the improvement of living conditions for Yazidis in the region.
With each new project, NI has expanded its capacity and impact on the ground in Sinjar. Despite all the progress made, the needs remain enormous, and there is still an urgent need for continued support from the international community. However, it is crucial that survivors remain at the heart of the decisions and outcomes that will help them rebuild their lives, sustain momentum, and shape their future.
