Yazidi is a
syncretic religion of the Middle East and combination of different other Middle
Eastern religions such as Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Judaism and Islam. They
are native people of the Kurdistan region and also speak Kurdish. Yazidi is
also believed to be the Kurdish religion before Kurds have converted to
Islam. Their number were high but got
less and lesser in centuries because of the pressure and cruelty against them. They
were mainly living in Sinjar (Shengal) region and around when ISIS militants
attacked their region on the 3rd of the August and they had to flee from the
region leaving almost everything behind themselves. Because when ISIS attacked
they either had to convert to Islam or were being killed, a destiny that many
of them faced. They had to flee not because they wanted to save their life but
also to save their children from being
kidnapped and wives and girls from being kidnapped and raped. As one of
them said;  |
| Some displaced people are living in the parks! |
“We run
away not to save our lives but to protect our honour, because they [ISIS] were
kidnapping our girls and women”.
The first
days, news released from the region were not clear and controversial. Peshmerga
forces who were supposed to protect and save the region and the people had
withdrawn from the region and the people, without even warning them. Other
Kurdish forces in Syria and Iraq, People Defence Units and PKK guerillas had
gone the region and started to fight ISIS militants. Hundreds of people have been said to be
killed and many women were kidnapped to be sold in bazaars as slave. Hundreds
of thousands Yazidi Kurds had to flee to Kurdistan Region’s cities such as
Duhok and its districts mainly Zakho and around.
To see what
happened there and how the situation of the displaced Yazidi Kurds was, I and
another friend who is also photographer (Zülküf Mavlay, also from Wephotos) went to Arbil, Makhmur
and then Dohuk. Displaced Yazidi Kurds mainly had to flee to Dohuk and around,
so we did not see any of them but Christian people who also had to escape from
ISIS attacks and had to live in the churchs and schools mainly in the Christian
region, Ankawa, in Arbil. We went to Saint Maria Church to see them, observe their
conditions, talk to them. We were told that there were around six thousands displaced
Christian people trying to live in the hard conditions in the yard of the
Church and school next to church and some unfinished buildings. After visiting Makhmur we left Arbil to go to
Dohuk. As soon as we entered the city, we saw displaced people everywhere, and
also faced with the result of the war.
 |
| They are worried about the coming days... |
Nevaf Xelîl
(39), Cemal Xwedêda (36), Yusif Pîr Hacî (42), Xêrp Şeref Sebrî (50), who were
from Sinune, Dihola and Girzerih villages living with their families in the
park next to one of the main roads. They used the blankets which were given to
them by local people as a cover for their living areas. They were provided with
water, food, blankets mainly by local people. They tied blankets to trees to make
a ‘bathroom’ both for washing their clothes and bathing.
 |
| Bathroom.. |
 |
| Bathroom, covered with blankets.. |
They are very
angry at Peshmerga forces controlling the area for their withdrawing without
warning them. ‘The name of Pehmerga was very
big but they [who withdrew] made it small” one of them said. They also
appreciated guerillas of PKK and YPG for coming and fighting for them and then
helping them to escape from the war area. They first had gone to Syrian Kurdish
area (known as Rojava in Kurdish) via the corridor opened by both YPG and
Peshmerga forces and then to Kurdistan Region in Iraq.
They called
the attacks and the whole process the 73th
‘Imperial order’, or ‘ferman’ in both Kurdish and Turkish, when they
start to talk about the day attacks started. They said that they have undergone
72 ‘ferman’ until now, and this is the 73th one. In each ferman they faced with
almost the same cruelty, so the fear, anger and sorrow for the relatives they
lost could be seen from their eyes when we talked with them.
Men were sitting
around, thinking about what they were going to do in the coming days, while
women were busy with the ‘house’ works, and children playing around. We left
them in their place and went to search the other displaced people in Dohuk.
 |
 |
| Two brothers with their families sheltered in a unfinished building... |
Berekat Osman
(66) and Reşo Osman (50), two brothers from Borika village in the Shengal
region. Their story is similar to others’. They first had to flee to the mountain
and then to Rojava and back to here, Dohuk. Their 70- years-old sister couldn’t
survive and died from thirst while they were trapped in the mountains. But
still they want to go back someday, if it is secure, because they still have
their homes there, and some relatives in the mountains.
 |
| In the shadow of a school, their 'new' home... |
 |
| Mam Salih is keeping his hope about future... |
“We are in
difficulties now, but we hope from God that not only we but all Kurds and
Kurdistan will be free from this difficulties. We don’t loose our hope, after difficulties,
there is easiness”.
 |
| Each class is a home for families.. |
All the
‘classes’ of the school were full of the people. Still they felt ‘lucky’
compared their conditions with the ones living in parks. Men were sitting and
talking, and women again were
doing ‘houseworks’, and children playing around. Most
of them want to go back to their ‘home’, villages, be with their relatives, but
in secure conditions. However, the fear could be seen in their eyes, too, and
some of them wanted international powers to help them, some said that they did
not want to live there anymore and wanted to move to European countries. The
‘responsible’ of the school Faris Salih (37) insistently told us that they
wanted to go back if only there was secure;
“We want
to go back, only if there is a security. If Shengal has its power itself and it
is supported by Kurdistan Reginol Goverment and European Union we will go back,
if not we won’t, because we are afraid”.
 |
| Children wanted to have their photo be taken, unaware of what happened... |
Children were
around us wanted to have their photos to be taken. We took some photo of them,
and said good bye to all, our heart was full of sorrow, but we still wanted to
be hopeful like Mam Salih was…
 |
| General Mayor of the Dohuk City, Shevket Mihemed Emin Osman. |
According to
Şevket Mihemed Emin Osman, general mayor of Dohuk city, the number of displaced
people in whole Dohuk and districts reached up to 750 thousands, 400 of them
are Yazidi Kurds, escaping from ISIS attacks. He was in the meeting with
districts mayors and
commitee when we visited him, and he told us
that they
also did not know the exact number of
displaced Yazidi Kurds. He also told us
that
all the schools and ‘empty’ buildings were full,
then, and they had a
commitee to get over the situation. He also said that they divided the Dohuk
city itself in 12 parts and there is a responsible from the commite for each
part to provide displaced people food, water, clothes and beds. He is
responsible for providing 6 thousands people’s needs and also said that all the
provision comes from Kurdistan Regional Goverment and local people.
16-17.08.2014
Arbil-Dohuk/Kurdistan.
*For a Kurdish version of this article /Ji bo versiyona vê nivîsê ya bi Kurdî: http://basnews.com/ku/News/Details/-Bi-w-ne--Kurd-n--zd---Eger-ewleh--hebe-em-d--vegerin/31388
-http://basnews.com/ku/News/Details/Hejmara-kocber-n--zd--li-Dihok--gehist-400-hezar-kesan/30811
-https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.556702427791873.1073741841.420423798086404&type=1
Copyright: Necat KESKİN/wephotos
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