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A letter from Kurdistan: “Yazidi beaten up by security forces while demanding help”

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As previously reported, Yazidi who were able to escape from Mount Sinjar are in Kurdistan. They did not leave their problem behind and their struggle is far from over. They are actually facing a humanitarian crisis.  In the Kurdistan Region there are more than 300,000 Yazidi refugees but there is no external support. There are no camps and thousands sleep on the streets hoping to leave Iraq as soon as possible. “We are not safe here,” they claimed. The news flow from Kurdistan is slow and sporadic. There is a growing tension in cities such as Zakho and Dohuk, at the Turkish border, said Farhan a former US Army interpreter.

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Do you want an ISIS gadget? Buy it in Istanbul

 

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In the working class district of Bagcilar, Istanbul, there is a shop called Islami Giyim, or Islamic Clothing. At first glance it might seem like any other store not worth paying any attention to. The reality is quite different.  This is the only known ISIS (or ISIL) merchandising store in Istanbul. T-shirts, hats, and flags are displayed next to books and plates. Twitter users have posted pictures calling for some sort of measures to be taken against the store. So far no actions have been reported.  The shop have been selling  clothes for months and Turkish media call it an example of the growing influence of the terrorist group in the country. Is Turkey fighting ISIS?

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“Yazidi women sold for 10 bucks” So, is it “mission accomplished?”

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While president Barack Obama declared U.S. Forces have accomplished their mission to rescue people trapped on Mount Sinjar, a group of Yazidi protested in front of the U.N. on Friday morning. About forty of them gathered in front of the HQ in New York, while a representative was inside meeting officials and asking for help. “IS [Islamic State] is still a great threat to our people,” they cried. They say the U.S. air strikes were not enough and there are at least 3,000 people trapped on top of the mountain. The situation, they claimed, is far from being resolved. United Nations officials agree with them and declared: “The situation is not over.” Many fear for women and children. The first, they claimed, are sold for 10 dollars and the second are being converted to Islam and forced to join the jihad.

“We need military and humanitarian support,” said to me Dakheel Zanadinan while holding a sign with pictures of slaughtered children. He lives in Lincoln, Nebraska, where he works for an NGO. He used to be an interpreter for US Special Forces in Iraq, he worked with them for years. Dakheel drove an entire day just to be here and protest against the U.N. lack of action. “My niece has been captured while escaping from Mount Sinjar,” he continued. She  is 10 years old and he does not know what to wish for her. If still alive, she faces violence and slavery.

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“I want to go back to Iraq and finish the job”

I wrote this article in Italian for The Post Internazionale and you can find it here, an abstract in English below:

“I want to go back and finish the job.” Jake is a 24 years-old veteran and he wants to fight in Iraq. He had been in the army for five years, 13 months of which he had spent in Iraq protecting the Golden Mosque at Samarra. He also trained the Iraqi army. Now he is trying to go back “to protect the people of Iraq and honor the ones [U.S. soldiers] who paid the ultimate sacrifice.” About 4,400 U.S. soldiers lost their lives in the 8-year long war. On June 7 when Jake saw Mosul falling into ISIS hands he immediately tried to re-enlist in the army, but the recruiters did not take him back. “I felt abandoned,” he told me.

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Benedetta Argentieri

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