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“Help us build a better, safer, and more just world for future generations.”

~ Nadia Murad

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Nadia’s Story

Nadia Murad, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and UNODC Goodwill Ambassador, is a leading advocate for survivors of genocide and sexual violence. Nadia’s peaceful life was brutally disrupted in 2014 when ISIS attacked her homeland in Sinjar to ethnically cleanse Iraq of all Yazidis. Since Nadia's escape from ISIS captivity, she has shared her story to raise awareness of ISIS and its genocidal campaign against the Yazidi people. She has become a powerful advocate for women in conflict settings and survivors of sexual violence worldwide.

Much of Nadia’s advocacy work is focused on meeting with global leaders to shed light on the continued plight of the Yazidi people and the need for justice for survivors of sexual violence. Nadia is the President and Chairwoman of Nadia’s Initiative, which actively works to persuade governments and international organizations to support the sustainable re-development of the Yazidi homeland. Nadia is the author of her memoir, The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity and My Fight Against the Islamic State.

Nadia’s Initiative

Nadia’s Initiative is dedicated to rebuilding communities in crisis and advocating globally for survivors of sexual violence. The Initiative’s current work is focused on the sustainable re-development of the Yazidi homeland in Sinjar, Iraq, where Nadia grew up. When ISIS launched their genocidal campaign, they not only killed and kidnapped Yazidis, but also destroyed the Yazidi homeland to ensure the community could never return.

Nadia’s Initiative partners with local communities and local and international organizations to design, support, and implement projects that promote the restoration of education, healthcare, livelihoods, WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene), culture, and women’s empowerment in the region. All Nadia’s Initiative programs are community-driven, survivor-centric, and designed to promote long-term peacebuilding. The Initiative advocates governments and international organizations to support efforts to rebuild Sinjar, seek justice for Yazidis, improve security in the region, and support survivors of sexual violence worldwide.

Recent News

Featured
Statement from Nadia’s Initiative on the 11th Anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide (English - Deutsche - عربي)
Statement from Nadia’s Initiative on the 11th Anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide (English - Deutsche - عربي)

On August 3, Yazidis gather in Sinjar and around the world to commemorate the 11th anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide – one of the most brutal atrocities of our time. Nadia’s Initiative joins the Yazidi community in honoring the victims, stands in solidarity with survivors, and calls on the international community to meet their resilience with meaningful action. Read our full statement here.

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Survivor Stories: Sari – The Woman Who Carried the World
Survivor Stories: Sari – The Woman Who Carried the World

When ISIS stormed Sinjar in August 2014, Sari’s husband vanished. Pregnant and clinging to her five terrified children, she was taken into captivity. Over the next three years, she endured the death of her newborn son, enslavement, and unimaginable brutality. When Sari finally escaped, she and her children spent another three years in a displacement camp – alone, exhausted, and fighting each day to survive. And when she returned home to Sinjar, there was no home left. Only ruins, silence, and darkness. Still, she rose. Sari’s story is not just one of survival. It is a testimony to the strength of Yazidi women and the unbreakable power of motherhood.

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Statement from Nadia’s Initiative on the Forced Deportation of a Yazidi Family from Germany (English/Deutsche)
Statement from Nadia’s Initiative on the Forced Deportation of a Yazidi Family from Germany (English/Deutsche)

Nadia’s Initiative is deeply alarmed by the recent forced deportation of a Yazidi family from Germany to Iraq, which was carried out despite an active court order halting their removal. The Potsdam Administrative Court had issued a binding decision (VG 16 L 845/25.A) granting suspensive effect to the family’s asylum appeal, recognizing serious legal doubts about the deportation and ruling that the family must not be removed. Nevertheless, German authorities proceeded with the deportation in violation of this order.

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