“Help us build a better, safer, and more just world for future generations.”
~ Nadia Murad
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 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.
Nadia Murad met recently with the U.S. Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken. As the 10th anniversary of the Yazidi genocide approaches, the pair discussed the importance of holding the perpetrators to account. Nadia highlighted the need for justice, not just for the Yazidi victims and survivors of ISIS atrocities, but for all victims of conflict-related sexual violence.
TIME named Nadia's Initiative Founder and President, Nadia Murad as one of its 2024 Women of the Year. The list recognizes extraordinary leaders fighting for a more equal world. In her interview with the magazine, Nadia spoke of her desire for justice and, "an end to the systematic use of violence against women and girls.”
As the remains of 41 additional victims of the 2014 Yazidi genocide are returned to their families to be laid to rest in Sinjar, 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.