Aug 3, 2023
USCIRF Commemorates the Ninth Anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide
Washington, D.C. – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) this week joined communities around the world in commemorating the ninth anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide perpetrated in Iraq by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
"USCIRF commemorates this solemn week in the history of the Yazidi people, who suffered mass atrocities during ISIS’s campaign of ethnic and religious cleansing,” USCIRF Commissioner Stephen Schneck said. “As we honor the thousands of lives lost to the genocide, USCIRF remains deeply concerned for the human rights and religious freedom of the survivors. USCIRF urges the U.S. government to support a multilateral approach to end the continued attacks on Sinjar and to actively work toward the safe return and resettlement of traumatized Yazidi communities.”
ISIS launched the Yazidi Genocide in 2014, targeting Iraq’s Yazidi minority for mass execution, mass rape, systematic sexual slavery and forced labor, and forced religious conversion. Although the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS— which includes the United States—and its local partners liberated all territory controlled by ISIS in Iraq and Syria, Yazidis in Iraq, Syria and elsewhere remain targets for harassment and discrimination by a variety of armed militant groups including remnants of ISIS. Sinjar remains destabilized, contributing to hundreds of thousands of genocide survivors languishing in displacement camps throughout Iraq and Syria. In July 2023, a group of Yazidi civil society organizations and community leaders called for the Iraqi government to administer a dedicated fund for the reconstruction of public infrastructure and private housing in the Sinjar district.
“Iraqi Yazidis’ homeland Sinjar has been torn apart by the continued violence of power-seeking militias, severe inadequacies in infrastructure, and military attacks from both the Iraqi and foreign governments. Thousands of Yazidi women and girls are still missing following their reported abductions, sex trafficking, and enslavement,” USCIRF Commissioner Frank Wolf said. “The United States must urge both the Iraqi federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government to fully implement the Sinjar Agreement, in consultation with Yazidis and other religious minorities, to help end this ongoing suffering.”
USCIRF’s 2023 Annual Report, January 2023 Factsheet on Iraq, and Spotlight podcast episode highlighted continued threats against Iraq’s Yazidis and made recommendations to the U.S. government to support the human rights and religious freedom of the Yazidi people.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan federal government entity established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected].
Additional Name(s): Dr. Badr Al-Mishari, Badr Al-Mesrahi, Badr Al-Misrahi, Sheikh Badr Nader Al-Mashari, الشيخ بدر نادر المشاري
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Saudi Arabia
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: Yes
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Religious Expression
Nature of Charges: Unknown
Badr Nader Al-Mashari is detained in relation to his religious belief and activity.
In July 2023, it was reported that authorities detained Al-Mashari, a prominent cleric, under mysterious circumstances and for unclear reasons. Al-Mashari had been critical of the government’s General Entertainment Authority for sponsoring concerts and events that contradicted religious and cultural norms. Several clerics critical of the General Entertainment Authority have been arrested and imprisoned in recent years.
Prisoners of Conscience, Tweet, July 17, 2023
Additional Name(s): مژگان صمیمی
Gender: Female
Perpetrator: Iran
Religion or Belief: Bahá`í
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Date of Detainment: July/19/2023
Date of Release: August/12/2023
Current Status: Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Religious Activity Religious Belief
Nature of Charges: Spreading Propaganda & False or Misleading Ideas, Information, or Materials
Mojgan Samimi was detained in relation to her religious belief and activity.
On July 19, 2023, security forces from Ministry of Intelligence reportedly arrested Samimi from her home in Rasht, Gilan province, in relation to her being Baha’i. After the arrest, Samimi called family to inform them of her detention at Lakan Prison. Samimi was reportedly charged with spreading “propaganda against the regime.”
On August 12, 2023, Samimi was released on bail.
Related Cases: Shiva Kashani-Nejad
Photo attributed to Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)
"شیوا کاشانی نژاد و مژگان صمیمی شهروندان بهائی با تودیع وثیقه آزاد شدند" Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)
"Two Baha'i Citizens Arrested in Rasht" Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)