Shireen Khudeeda was 19 when Islamic State fighters killed over 250 men in her village of Hardan, northern Iraq, in August 2014. She was abducted and held as a sex slave for three years, enduring rape, sale, and gifting among ISIS members. Now 31, she says the UK and international community have failed to honour pledges to prevent genocide and prosecute perpetrators.
Genocide recognised but justice delayed
The UK acknowledged the Yazidi genocide in August 2023, following the UN, Germany, France, and the US. However, Shireen and other survivors argue that recognition is symbolic without accountability. The 1948 Genocide Convention, ratified by the UK in 1970, obliges states to prevent and punish genocide. Yet no one has been prosecuted for genocide in the UK. Only a handful of cases have proceeded in Germany and France, including one ISIS member convicted in November 2021. A UN inquiry has identified over 1,400 suspected perpetrators.
Truth Commission to address inaction
A new Truth Commission, chaired by human rights lawyer Baroness Helena Kennedy KC, will hear oral evidence from over 30 survivor-experts and specialists across three days. Its report will be submitted to the Houses of Parliament in 2027. Professor Aldo Zammit-Borda of City St George’s, University of London, said: 'The Commission is there to create momentum for justice for the Yazidi people. To remind the world that they are waiting for justice.' The Commission aims to hold countries accountable for inaction and pressure Iraq to prosecute fighters for genocide.
Survivor’s plea for real action
Shireen, now an advocate, said: 'The UK and the international community have failed us by offering promises and sympathy instead of the real accountability, justice, and action we need. True justice means examining all aspects of the genocide to ensure this will never happen again.' She also calls for investment in professional centres to support survivors. The Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command has a war crimes team, and in 2026 the CPS charged a man with crimes against humanity for international crimes in Syria.
Yazidi community still suffering
ISIS killed over 5,000 Yazidis and enslaved an estimated 6,000, with 2,700 still missing. Fewer than 1,000 Yazidis live in the UK; the largest diaspora is in Germany, with over 200,000. The Truth Commission is funded by the Economic Social Research Council and led by experts at City St George’s, University of Manchester, and the German Institute for Global and Area Studies. The Foreign Office declined to comment.
