A photo exhibition titled “Ji Taritiyê ber bi Ronahiyê: Hêviya Tawisê Melek” (From Darkness Toward Light: The Hope of the Peacock Angel), which focuses on the genocide carried out by ISIS in Shengal in 2014, has opened in the German city of Herford.

Photojournalist Rawend Jawad Smail, whose work centers on the Yazidi (Êzidî) Genocide, focuses particularly on the people of Shengal (Sinjar), who survived the genocide and now live as refugees in camps across Southern Kurdistan (Bashur).

Smail stated that the exhibition, hosted by Marta Hoch Museum 2 and organized in collaboration with Yekmal, presents images that reflect the wounds and pain of the Yazidi community living in camps.

Rawend Jawad Smail shared his thoughts on the exhibition, saying: “Today, the 10th Yazidi Genocide Exhibition is being held in Herford, Germany. As a photojournalist, I focused on life in the refugee camps in Southern Kurdistan after the 2014 genocide committed by ISIS in Shengal. I documented conditions in all three camps. It is significant that these photographs are being displayed in a country like Germany. I would like to thank Yekmal (a Kurdish cultural organization based in Germany), which has played a leading role in organizing this exhibition and has long worked to promote Kurdish culture in Germany. The exhibition will remain open until June 8. I also extend my thanks to the representatives of the Marta Museum for providing space and showing solidarity.”

Artist Shano Ibrahim, who attended the exhibition, remarked that all of Rawend Jawad’s photographs reflect the genocide against the Yazidis. Ibrahim said, “For me, it was painful and heartbreaking. Some of the people in the photographs were friends, people I knew. Some of them had been rescued and somehow relocated to camps in Southern Kurdistan. Seeing images that portray their lives there is deeply meaningful. I hope such things never happen again. I now wish for our artists to photograph joy, freedom, and the colors and diversity of Kurdistan.”

Fehimsha Helbest, who visited the exhibition, said: “We congratulate Rawend Jawad on his work. We are very grateful that the artist documented the genocide committed against the Yazidis in 2014 and shared it with us. These images were taken there. Our wounds are deep. This exhibition has reopened them.”

Rawend Jawad, a photo artist who has been living in Germany for the past eleven years, has held nine exhibitions to date in cities such as Paris, London, and various locations across Germany. The exhibition in Herford will remain open until June 6, 2025.