Statement: Nadia Murad and Nadia's Initiative call for the creation of a dedicated team to exhume mass graves in Sinjar

Today, the remains of 41 more Yazidi victims of the 2014 genocide were returned to their families to be laid to rest in their homeland of Sinjar.

An official ceremony was held at the Yazidi Genocide Memorial in Sinjar before they were taken to their respective villages for burial according to Yazidi traditions. 

Nadia's Initiative has been coordinating closely with the relevant authorities and with survivors and their families, providing them with all necessary resources and support to facilitate these ceremonies.

Since the liberation of the region from ISIS, a total of 215 victims have been identified and returned to their loved ones. However dozens of mass graves are yet to be exhumed, and thousands of victims are not yet identified. The process of exhuming mass graves and identifying remains continues to be painfully slow, and in recent cases, has been done in an unprofessional and disrespectful manner.

Therefore, we call on the Iraqi government to create a team of professionals dedicated specifically to the exhumation of mass graves in Sinjar, and to do so expeditiously. This important step will serve to better preserve all evidence of ISIS crimes, and to expedite the process of identifying and returning remains to the families of the victims, where they can be buried according to Yazidi traditions and culture. 

The timely exhumation of mass graves and the identification and return of remains is a critical aspect of justice due to these victims and their families, and provides them with a sense of closure.

For more information contact press@nadiasinitiative.org