Middle East
File photo of Yezidi boys sharing a meal in Syrian Democratic Forces-held territory after escaping the last scrap of the Islamic State group's collapsed "caliphate." Photo: AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Yezidi children are the victims of a "mental health crisis" six years after the Islamic State terror group (ISIS) launched a genocide against their small community in northern Iraq, according to a new report by Amnesty International.
ISIS attacked the Shingal district in the Nineveh Plains on August 3, 2014, abducting and killing thousands belonging to the ancient Yezidi minority. Boys and men were summarily executed or trained as soldiers, whereas girls and women were subjected to repeated sexual violence and forced labour.
Six years later, almost 2,000 children have returned to their families, according to estimates by Amnesty in a report published on Thursday, "but homecomings have not marked the end of their suffering."
Many children have lost the ability to speak their mother tongue, and suffer from severe psychological issues, including anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, according to information gathered through extensive interviews with survivors and caregivers.
"They've been transplanted from their community, their family, their language, their family, their whole world..I was really taken aback by the levels of trauma," report author Nicolette Waldman told Rudaw English on Wednesday.
The mental health crisis within the community is acute, and suicides are on the rise. However, the deep trauma faced by young children is often overshadowed by the needs of the wider community, according to findings published in the report.
"One girl came back to her family when she was six-years-old, and the doctor said she was too young to treat; there was no care available," Waldman added.
Many child returnees told Amnesty that they have received no form of help since leaving captivity.
According to figures from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Office for Yezidi Abductees’ Affairs, 360,000 of the minority were displaced, most of whom still remain in camps across the Kurdistan Region.
The help available for survivors is not only insufficient, but can do further damage, according to humanitarian actors and officials.
"Those who are providing psychological support for these children are not professionals ...many of these organizations are retraumatizing the children..they are victimizing the victims," an official from Duhok's Board of Relief and Humanitarian Affairs said in the report.
Yezidi psychologist Dr Jan Kizilhan, who specializes in post-conflict trauma, says that all Yezidi children will suffer the long-term effects of their trauma if not treated.
"All children, whether in captivity or not, are affected by the genocide and have experienced a break in their development, that if not treated, they will be affected their whole lives," he told Rudaw English via email.
"They may develop personality disorders, may remain aggressive, isolated and permanently disabled."
Hussein Naser Rascho, a doctor from Shingal who has treated scores of children who have escaped or been freed from ISIS, also notes the long-lasting psychological effects of the genocide.
"It's very difficult to treat them [the children], most have them have psychological issues..many of them were injured. The 15-20 year olds are the most difficult. They knew everything about Shingal, about their homes, about their families," he told Rudaw English by phone.
"At this age they knew what they were doing was completely wrong and they wanted to go back to their families, but they never had the chance."
ISIS attacked the Shingal district in the Nineveh Plains on August 3, 2014, abducting and killing thousands belonging to the ancient Yezidi minority. Boys and men were summarily executed or trained as soldiers, whereas girls and women were subjected to repeated sexual violence and forced labour.
Six years later, almost 2,000 children have returned to their families, according to estimates by Amnesty in a report published on Thursday, "but homecomings have not marked the end of their suffering."
Many children have lost the ability to speak their mother tongue, and suffer from severe psychological issues, including anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, according to information gathered through extensive interviews with survivors and caregivers.
"They've been transplanted from their community, their family, their language, their family, their whole world..I was really taken aback by the levels of trauma," report author Nicolette Waldman told Rudaw English on Wednesday.
The mental health crisis within the community is acute, and suicides are on the rise. However, the deep trauma faced by young children is often overshadowed by the needs of the wider community, according to findings published in the report.
"One girl came back to her family when she was six-years-old, and the doctor said she was too young to treat; there was no care available," Waldman added.
Many child returnees told Amnesty that they have received no form of help since leaving captivity.
According to figures from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Office for Yezidi Abductees’ Affairs, 360,000 of the minority were displaced, most of whom still remain in camps across the Kurdistan Region.
The help available for survivors is not only insufficient, but can do further damage, according to humanitarian actors and officials.
"Those who are providing psychological support for these children are not professionals ...many of these organizations are retraumatizing the children..they are victimizing the victims," an official from Duhok's Board of Relief and Humanitarian Affairs said in the report.
Yezidi psychologist Dr Jan Kizilhan, who specializes in post-conflict trauma, says that all Yezidi children will suffer the long-term effects of their trauma if not treated.
"All children, whether in captivity or not, are affected by the genocide and have experienced a break in their development, that if not treated, they will be affected their whole lives," he told Rudaw English via email.
"They may develop personality disorders, may remain aggressive, isolated and permanently disabled."
Hussein Naser Rascho, a doctor from Shingal who has treated scores of children who have escaped or been freed from ISIS, also notes the long-lasting psychological effects of the genocide.
"It's very difficult to treat them [the children], most have them have psychological issues..many of them were injured. The 15-20 year olds are the most difficult. They knew everything about Shingal, about their homes, about their families," he told Rudaw English by phone.
"At this age they knew what they were doing was completely wrong and they wanted to go back to their families, but they never had the chance."
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