News
Yazidi genocide survivor Nadia Murad appointed UN Goodwill Ambassador
Young woman has emerged as one of most prominent voices of Yazidi people on global scale
Murad's appointment coincides with the celebration of the International Day of Peace. Her nomination will be attended by UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, who earlier declared: "I cried when I heard [Murad's] story," the UN press service reports. "Nadia [Murad] has so much strength, courage and dignity," Ban further said.
Speaking to the UN Security Council (December 2015) and to world wide media, Murad has told her story since IS extremists occupied the Sinjar region in August 2014. Murad, born in 1993, witnessed executions of scores of Yazidis by IS members before being kidnapped by the jihadist organization and being sold as a sex slave, only to be subsequently raped on several occasions by them.
Murad managed to escape from captivity in November 2014, and has since lived as a refugee in Stuttgart (Germany). The young woman has launched a global campaign to raise awareness about the tragedy underwent by the Yazidis. Murad has called on the UN and leading governments to rescue women and children -at least 3,200, according to UN estimates- still captive in Islamic State-held territory.
Yazidis are a Kurdish-speaking ethno-religious group inhabiting different areas of Kurdistan and Armenia -and now also found in exile. The Islamic State considers them to be infidel, devil worshippers who deserve extermination.