Documentation of persecution and efforts for accountability
Following the UN and Iraqi Parliament’s recognition of the ISIS‑led atrocities as genocide, Yazidi survivors have been granted a suite of legal remedies, including the Yazidi Female Survivors Law, compensation programmes, psychosocial support, and avenues for criminal accountability. This article surveys the domestic and international mechanisms that constitute those remedies.
The 2007 Qahtaniyah car bombings killed hundreds of Yazidis and sparked a complex web of domestic and international legal responses. This article surveys the investigations, the limited prosecutions in Iraq, and the role of international mechanisms—including the UN‑backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon as a precedent—for pursuing accountability.
The 2026 Yazidi Truth Commission, convened in Germany, seeks accountability for the 2014 ISIS genocide. Compared with other truth commissions, it blends community‑driven testimony with a non‑transitional legal framework, raising new questions about legitimacy, scope, and impact.
This article examines the legal mechanisms—both international and Iraqi national—that aim to locate and account for missing Yazidis after the Islamic State genocide. It outlines court cases, legislative frameworks, and the role of civil‑society actors in pursuing justice and truth.
Since ISIS’s 2014 campaign devastated dozens of Yazidi holy sites, a mix of local communities, NGOs, and international donors have launched reconstruction projects. This article surveys the main initiatives, the obstacles they face, and the measurable outcomes up to 2026.
The 2014 Islamic State genocide devastated Yazidi tangible and intangible heritage, destroying shrines, disrupting rituals, and prompting resilient reconstruction efforts. Scholarly reports document the scale of loss, the cultural trauma, and the community’s ongoing preservation initiatives.
Since the 2014 Sinjar offensive, a series of international and national courts have pursued accountability for ISIS’s genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes against the Yazidi community. Landmark verdicts in Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands illustrate the growing reach of universal jurisdiction and the challenges of documenting survivor testimony.
The 2026 Truth Commission in Iraq employs forensic archaeology, DNA analysis, and international expertise to excavate Yazidi mass graves, documenting ISIL atrocities and supporting prosecutions. Its work builds on earlier Iraqi and UN initiatives, employing rigorous scientific protocols and community testimony.
Since the 2014 Sinjar offensive, international courts have grappled with whether ISIS’s atrocities against the Yazidi community meet the legal threshold of genocide under the 1948 Convention. The landmark Stockholm District Court judgment of 2025 clarified the required intent to destroy, setting a precedent for future prosecutions.
This article examines how the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) employed sophisticated visual and textual propaganda to demonize, dehumanize, and justify genocide against the Yazidi community. Drawing on scholarly analyses of Dabiq magazine, multimedia releases, and field reports, it reveals the mechanisms, regional variations, and contested interpretations of this propaganda war.