(ANALYSIS) Earlier this month, a trial of a Dutch member of Daesh, also known as the Islamic State group, began in The Hague, Netherlands. The Dutch national, known as Hasna A., is being tried for crimes against Yazidi women, representing a pivotal moment in the global fight for justice and accountability.
Read More(ANALYSIS) In early August 2024, thousands of women and women’s rights campaigners took to the streets across Iraq to protest proposed legal changes that effectively would legalize child marriage. The proposed change is to allow citizens to choose between religious authorities or civil judiciary to decide on family matters.
Read More(ANALYSIS) On the morning of Aug. 3, 2014, the Islamic State group launched a ruthless and swift campaign in Sinjar, in northwestern Iraq. The target was Yezidis: a monotheistic religious group whose members have long been persecuted. What explains the ferocity of this genocidal campaign?
Read MoreA drone attack that killed three American troops and wounded at least 34 more at a base in Jordan has increased fears of a widening conflict in the Middle East — and the possibility that the U.S. may be further drawn into the fighting.
Read More(OPINION) Violations of the right to freedom of religion or belief, including in their most egregious manifestations, whether crimes against humanity, war crimes or even genocide, are not issues left behind in 2022, or in the past. The early days of 2023 already show that such violations will continue.
Read MoreAs the pope met with local Christian and Muslim leaders in March 2021, the names of smaller religious groups found in Iraq also made the news. One of these was the Mandaeans. Also called Sabians, they are followers of the last Gnostic religion to survive continuously from ancient times down to the present day.
Read More(OPINION) Six years ago, members of the Daesh organization launched an attack against Yazidis in Iraq. They have yet to face legal consequences for these actions, and organizations are still attempting to capture the violence enacted against women and children.
Read MoreDavid Eubank and his wife have raised their children in some of the world’s most dangerous places. Their Christian faith calls them to it, they say.
Read MoreThe terror organization lost its territory and its caliph. Its ideology will be much harder to defeat, say those who have studied the group’s evolution and theology.
Read MoreA group of Yazidi journalists visited the Religion Unplugged offices in New York, hosted by the U.S. State Department, to talk about the current state of affairs in Iraq for the persecuted people group.
Read More(OPINION) The lack of swift justice for Yazidis sends the outrageous message that it is possible to get away with genocide.
Read MoreWe talked to human rights activist Dr. Widad Akreyi about the Yazidi community’s wait for justice on the international stage after the start of a genocide on Aug. 3, 2014. Thousands captured by Islamic State fighters remain missing.
Read More(COMMENTARY) There are still hotspots of Daesh support, and a territorial defeat of Daesh does not mean the defeat of their perverted ideology, which is still threatening religious minorities like the Yazidis.
Read More(COMMENTARY) Iran’s nefarious intentions and activities are being closely scrutinized by the Trump administration and have led to crippling sanctions on Iran’s oil exports. And now U.S. waivers – which permitted eight specific countries to purchase Iranian oil despite existing sanctions – will not be renewed in May 2019.
Read More(COMMENTARY) Much violence and discrimination against Christians globally goes unnoticed in newspapers. This could be seen with US Vice President Mike Pence’s recent remarks - hardly reported - condemning religious persecution of both Muslims and Christians.
Read MoreSurviving Yazidis and Christians in Iraq and Syria will remember their people’s genocide for generations. And in the aftermath of ISIS attacks, help and hope are still in very short supply.
Read More(COMMENTARY) The persecution of Christians and other minorities in the Middle East was not one of 2018's big news stories. Instead, this parade of horrors became a kind of "old news" that rarely reached the prime headlines offered by elite newsrooms.
Read More(COMMENTARY) Israel is preparing to officially demand compensation for assets abandoned by Jews who were forced to flee eight Arab countries after the establishment of the State of Israel, to the tune of $250 billion.
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