Dark Days in Syria: Urgent Need for Protection of Minorities

Dear Friends and Supporters,

The Yezidi community is deeply alarmed by recent developments in northern Syria, which are exacerbating the already precarious situation for highly vulnerable populations. FYF is receiving updates from Yezidis on the ground about worsening displacement, deteriorating humanitarian conditions, and growing protection concerns. Families who have already endured repeated forced displacement now fear further violence and separation, echoing patterns the community knows all too well.

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URGENT NEED FOR PROTECTION OF YEZIDI CIVILLIANS IN NORTHERN SYRIA

FYF has received direct reports on the dire situation of approximately 1,200 displaced Yezidi families in and around Aleppo, Syria. Originally from Afrin, these families were forced to flee years ago due to targeted religious persecution by Islamist extremist groups. Today, around 800 families have been forced back to Afrin amid ongoing chaos, where the same extremist factions remain in control, putting them at extreme risk. Other Yezidi families remain displaced in and around Aleppo, sheltering in unfinished buildings and makeshift camps.

Confirmed civilian casualties among Yezidis thus far are Ibrahim Khalil (male), and Jacklin Hassko (female). We call upon the international community to assist Yezidi civil society in ensuring safety of Yezidi civilians and urging Syrian authorities to ensure its forces refrain from any form of religious-based violence against religious or ethnic minority communities.

Read FYF's full statement on the situation of Yezidis in Syria here.

Moreover, in Rojava, the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria suffered a coordinated attack by the Syrian Interim Government forces, which included a number of extremist members, including former ISIS members. Kurdish women in Syria, who have historically led the defense of their communities—including protecting Yezidis during the 2014 genocide—are now deliberately targeted. This was recently exemplified in a widely circulated video, where a Syrian soldier is seen holding the severed braid of a female fighter, violating the powerful and important symbol of Kurdish women's resistance.

FYF JUSTICE MANAGER JOINS PANEL AT THE HOUSE OF EUROPE, THE HAGUE

Last week, FYF's Justice Manager, Waheeda Omer, was a panelist at the House of Europe's Survivors’ Dialogue on Truth, Trauma and Trial at The Hague. The event took place on the sidelines of the merits hearings in The Gambia v. Myanmar case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and brought together survivors, community advocates, state delegates, and representatives from academia and civil society, leveraging historic proceedings to foster collective advocacy on survivor-centric justice.

Waheeda Omer leads FYF’s Justice Program—an all-female team of Yezidi lawyers and investigators that conducts in-depth structural investigations into ISIS crimes against the Yezidi community. The team compiles detailed crime scene analyses and suspect dossiers and works closely with UN mechanisms and international war crimes units to strengthen accountability and document crimes, with a particular focus on female survivors of sexual violence.

At the event, Waheeda highlighted the ongoing lack of justice as tens of thousands of Yezidis remain displaced and thousands are still missing. She also emphasized the importance of religious and community acceptance in restoring dignity and belonging for survivors of sexual violence at the hands of ISIS. Following the genocide, formal declarations by Yezidi religious leadership welcoming survivors back were a vital step toward healing and reintegration—reducing stigma, encouraging survivors to access critical mental health, psychosocial, and protection services, and, in some cases, even giving women the courage to escape captivity. Her message reinforced that justice for Yezidis must be collective, survivor-centric, and rooted in community healing.