JINHA

SHENGAL - In the wake of Daesh's attack on the city of Shengal, Iraq and the abduction of thousands of women, women are getting their revenge. Three Êzidî sisters have headed to the front in Shengal to protect both women and the threatened Êzidî people.

On August 3, 2014, Daesh attacked the Êzidî religious group living in the city of Shengal, located in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The gang slaughtered men and boys while abducting thousands of women. Since then, the people of Shengal have formed self-defense units to push Daesh out of the area and reclaim the city so that they can live in peace. In the women's unit, the YPJ Shengal, three Êzidî sisters are fighting for revenge on the gang that attacked their fellow Êzidî women.

Dersim Shengal Kawa, one of the sisters, is a member of the YPJ Shengal command. As three Êzidî women, she said, they decided it was time for them to say "no more" to the attacks targeting their people and especially women.

Berîtan Sozdar, another of the sisters, has been on the front for eleven months. "If someone isn't free in their own land, if they are under occupation by an enemy, there is no point in staying at home and waiting for another attack," she said. She noted that the Êzidî community initially had trouble understanding why three sisters would join the resistance, but that the sisters had become a source of hope for them.

The third sister, Rûken Munzur, promised that they would not abandon their struggle or the city of Shengal until it was liberated. Their ultimate goal, she said, was to free all four parts of Kurdistan from attacks and occupation.

(gc/fk/cm)