Today marks the 8th anniversary of the ISIS attacks on Shengal. According to official data, 1293 people were killed by ISIS in the first days of the attack and were buried in 87 mass graves. Under the leadership of the Yazidi Democracy and Freedom Party (PADÊ) and the Martyrs' Families Association, hundreds of Yazidi citizens living in Shengal visited the mass graves to commemorate the martyrs of the mass slaughter.

'No proper work has been done to open mass graves'

Speaking during the visit to a mass grave in Girzerik, Pakize Celal, a martyr’s relative, said that although 8 years have passed, no proper work has been done to open the mass graves. “Samples taken from the bodies of the victims from the opened mass graves were sent to Baghdad. Families have been waiting for two years, but the remains are not delivered to them on the grounds that the test results are not available yet. I am calling on the Iraqi government and relevant authorities to fulfil their duties and responsibilities to exhume the bodies buried in the mass graves,” Celal stated.

'We should unite'

PADÊ Politburo member Hadi Mehol pointed out that ISIS killed all Yazidis without distinction during the mass slaughter in 2014. “There are many people from the same tribe in the mass graves. I am calling on all Yazidi people: just as ISIS buried our people from the same tribe in a single grave, we must form our unity in the same way,” Mehol remarked.

Mehol urged Yazidi migrants to return to their land and reclaim the remains of their martyrs: “If we do not return to our lands, we cannot say that we have defeated the enemy. Supporting the Yazidis in Shengal and striving for their return to Shengal is an obligation for every single Yazidi person in the world.”