Yazidi men freed from ISIS captivity, reunite with families after years of separation
Damascus censures SDF 'calls for federalism' following Kurdish unity conference
President Barzani praises Rojava's Kurdish conference
Kurds unite behind vision for decentralized Syria
SDF chief says division of Syria not goal of pan-Kurdish conference
A+ A-
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have rescued two Yazidi men from the grip of the Islamic State (ISIS) after years in captivity, an affiliate of the Iraqi labor ministry confirmed to Rudaw on Sunday. This marks the second such rescue by the SDF in under two weeks.
The individuals, identified by Rudaw by their initials D.R. and O.K., were reunited with their families under the supervision of the Yazidi Affairs Office, an affiliate of the Iraqi ministry of labor.
Born in 2003, D.R. is from the village of Kocho (Kojo), while O.K., born in 2006, hails from the village of al-Wardiya. Both villages are located in the predominantly Yazidi district of Shingal (Shingal) in northern Iraq.
In June 2014, ISIS seized control of large swathes of territory in Iraq's north and west. A little over a month later, in August, the group launched a wide-scale attack against the Yazidi community in Iraq's northern Shingal.
The rescued captives, D.R. and O.K, 'were kidnapped by ISIS militants in 2014,' Sarab Ilias, head of the Yazidis affairs office at the Iraqi ministry of labor told Rudaw on Sunday.
'Unfortunately, during [the military] operations and bombings, D.R. lost a leg and O.K. lost an arm,' Ilias explained, adding that the two men were 'reunited with their families,' who currently reside in Shingal and the Qadiya camp located in the Kurdistan Region's Duhok province.
Notably, this is the second such operation led by the Kurdish-led SDF in less than two weeks.
The SDF in mid-April announced that they had rescued a Yazidi man who had been abducted by ISIS around 11 years ago, when he was just eight years old.
The Kurdish-led force then said that its military units carried out a 'special security operation' to free the kidnapped Yazidi identified as O.K.
O.K. was quoted by the SDF statement as sharing the harrowing story of his abduction by ISIS.
'I was born in 2006, and I was just a child when ISIS kidnapped me in 2014. ISIS captured me and my family, but separated me and my brother.'
He said that he was held in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, which ISIS in 2014 declared as the capital of its proclaimed caliphate in Syria and Iraq. He remained in Mosul for three months before being separated from his brother and transferred, along with 60 other Yazidi children, to the city of Albu Kamal in eastern Syria.
'After arriving in Al-Bukamal, ISIS subjected us to a three-year religious indoctrination course. I was given the name 'Osama al-Sinjari.' Then we were moved to the Syrian desert for another three years of military training,' he recounted.
O.K. noted that near the end of 2024 and 'while I was getting treatment at one of the ISIS hideouts in the Homs desert, the hideout was struck by an intense airstrike from the [US-led] Global Coalition [to Defeat ISIS], which resulted in the death of 20 terrorists, including high-ranking commanders.'
'I miraculously survived the bombing,' he said, expressing his relief and gratitude toward the SDF for 'liberating him and thousands of other Yazidis, particularly women, from the grip of ISIS.'
ISIS's 2014 assault on Shingal resulted in the abduction of 6,417 Yazidi women and children, many of whom were subjected to sexual slavery and forced labor. Despite being territorially defeated in Iraq by 2017 and in Syria by 2019, ISIS continues to pose a security threat in the region.
The United Nations has recognized the systematic targeting of the Yazidis as genocide. Up to 200,000 Yazidis were displaced from Shingal, many of whom now live in camps across the Kurdistan Region, particularly in Dohuk province.
As of now, 2,590 Yazidis remain missing, according to the Office of Rescuing Abducted Yazidis, which is affiliated with the Kurdistan Region Presidency.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Shafaq News
21 minutes ago
- Shafaq News
UN 'optimistic' on resolving Erbil–Baghdad disputes
Shafaq News – Baghdad The UN Special Representative for Iraq, Mohamed al-Hassan, voiced optimism on Tuesday about the prospect of an agreement between the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to resolve their longstanding disputes. Speaking after a memorial service in Baghdad for victims of the 2003 UN headquarters bombing, al-Hassan underlined his strong ties with the Iraqi and Kurdish leaders and described their engagement as encouraging. 'I am optimistic that Erbil and Baghdad can reach a good formula to address their differences,' he told reporters. Al-Hassan noted that Kurdistan Region's leadership 'always stresses the importance of preserving Iraq and implementing the constitution in all its provisions,' adding that current conditions offer a real opportunity for progress. A government source told Shafaq News on Monday that a KRG delegation is scheduled to begin meetings with Iraqi counterparts today to address salary payment mechanisms—a sticking point that remains among the most contentious issues between the two sides. The upcoming meeting follows a recent agreement between the Kurdistan Region's Ministry of Natural Resources and Iraq's Oil Ministry on an oil export mechanism, an essential step for enabling salary disbursements.
Shafaq News
2 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Iraq after the Global Coalition: Between sovereignty and strategic risk
Shafaq News The US-led Global Coalition's withdrawal from Iraq has officially begun, with troops departing from Ain al-Assad airbase in western al-Anbar. Ain al-Assad, Iraq's second-largest air installation, has long hosted both Iraqi and coalition forces under Iraq's al-Jazeera and al-Badiya Operations Command. Its evacuation marks the first visible step in a two-stage drawdown, which will continue through September 2026. The plan envisages phased departures from Baghdad, followed by the retention of fewer than 500 US personnel in Erbil before their redeployment to Kuwait. For Baghdad, the process represents a symbolic end to more than two decades of foreign troop deployments. Yet it also exposes the delicate balance between consolidating sovereignty and confronting security gaps that remain unresolved. A Political Achievement in the Government's Eyes Spokesman for the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Sabah al-Naaman, described the withdrawal as 'one of the government's most significant achievements.' He credited 'intensive political efforts and the Prime Minister's determination' alongside tangible improvements in Iraq's security apparatus — from modernizing its arsenal to enhancing intelligence capabilities. In his view, the departure reflects confidence that Iraqi forces can now independently secure the country and prevent the resurgence of terrorism. 'The growing capabilities of our security forces, along with the government's ongoing efforts to develop the military and security system with the latest weaponry and technical technologies, in addition to enhancing the efficiency of the intelligence services, are all factors that enable Iraq to fully take control of the security file and deter any threat to the country's security,' he told Shafaq News. Legal Framework and Political Reassurances Echoing the government's message, lawmaker Imran al-Karkoushi, of the Iran-backed State of Law Coalition, insisted the redeployment 'stems from bilateral security agreements and is not a result of external pressure or regional tensions.' He pointed to the 2008 US–Iraq Strategic Framework Agreement (SFA) as the 'legal basis guiding the move.' Unlike earlier troop-specific arrangements, the SFA lays out the broader partnership between Baghdad and Washington, covering security cooperation, economic development, cultural exchange, and respect for Iraqi sovereignty. By grounding the withdrawal in this framework, al-Karkoushi sought to counter arguments that the decision is linked to US–Iran tensions or regional escalations. Instead, 'it is a contractual step within Iraq's sovereign right to shape its foreign partnerships.' Parliamentary Skepticism: Airspace and Air Defenses Other lawmakers voiced sharper concerns. Independent MP Haitham al-Zarkani criticized the Global Coalition for its 'failure' to protect Iraq's skies, citing repeated airspace violations and cross-border strikes carried out from Iraqi territory without coalition intervention. 'Iraqi airspace has been used to carry out attacks on neighboring countries without any response from the Coalition, and the United States has deliberately refrained from providing Iraq with advanced air defense systems, which makes its withdrawal or continued presence have no real effect,' he explained to Shafaq News. Warns of Premature Timing Security expert Ali al-Maamari warned that the decision to withdraw from Ain al-Assad and the Victoria base near Baghdad airport was based on assessments of readiness that he considers premature. While Iraqi forces have accumulated significant combat experience on the ground, he argued that they still lack 'effective air defense systems and advanced radar technologies capable of intercepting missiles and hostile aircraft.' From Domestic to Regional Threats Security analyst Adnan al-Kinani stressed that Iraq's security challenges no longer stem primarily from ISIS. 'ISIS as an organization is largely dismantled, but external threats — such as potential Turkish incursions or engineered Iraq–Syria tensions — now pose the real danger,' he told Shafaq News. He also cautioned that Iraq risks becoming a theater for broader rivalries: 'The United States and Israel may attempt to use Iraqi territory as a platform for pressuring or attacking Iran, which poses a strategic risk to national sovereignty.' For al-Kinani, the coalition's departure does not eliminate risk but shifts it outward — to borders, neighbors, and the regional balance of power. Intelligence Gaps and Regional Competition Security expert Saif Raad emphasized another vulnerability: the coalition's departure leaves Iraq at risk of losing advanced intelligence support, including satellite imagery and aerial reconnaissance. 'This comes at a time of ongoing unrest in Syria and renewed ISIS activity in al-Hol camp,' he said, referring to the sprawling detention site in northeast Syria that continues to harbor thousands of ISIS-linked individuals. Raad also noted that Iran appears poised to fill part of the vacuum. A recent Baghdad–Tehran security agreement, signed as the US exit timetable was being finalized, signals Tehran's intent to expand its role in training and intelligence. For Iraq, this creates a dilemma: trading one external dependency for another risks limiting its freedom of maneuver in the long run. Between Sovereignty and Exposure The debate reflects two competing lenses. For the government and its allies, the withdrawal is a sign of sovereign maturity, anchored in international agreements and political determination. For skeptical lawmakers and experts, the risks lie in capability gaps and the shifting nature of threats — from insurgency to regional power competition. As the countdown to September 2026 accelerates, the central question remains: can Iraq protect its fragile security gains while resisting entanglement in wider regional conflicts?
Iraq Business
12 hours ago
- Iraq Business
Kurdistan Region Electricity Reform and the "Runaki" Project
By Mohammed Hussein, for the Institute of Regional and International Studies (IRIS) at the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS). The opinions expressed are those of the author(s), and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Kurdistan Region Electricity Reform and the "Runaki" Project The Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) has struggled with electricity shortages for decades. To address this challenge, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) established the Runaki Project, which means "light" in Kurdish. Launched in 2024, it aims to manage the region's power sector systematically and ensure 24-hour electricity for households and businesses by the end of 2026. If successful, it could ultimately end the widespread reliance on highly polluting diesel generators and replace them with supply from natural gas-power plants. However, there are serious societal concerns around the costs for consumers associated with the new system, which presents a major challenge to the project's long-term success. This report analyzes the Runaki Project and positions it as a potential structural response to the KRG's endemic electricity shortages. It examines the underlying incentives and institutional constraints that might shape the project's design and implementation. It further identifies the winners and losers of Runaki and elaborates on the fiscal, political, and distributional challenges that will influence its outcomes and sustainability. The full report can be read here. To browse our comprehensive library of reports on Iraq, click here.
