Yazidism (Êzidî in Kurdish) is probably the most ancient monotheistic faith in the World. It is based on the belief in one God, who created the world and entrusted it into the care of seven Holy Beings, known as Angels. Preeminent among them is Tawûsê Melek, the Peackok Angel, who has authority over the world.
Yazidis of Kurdistan have been called 'devil-worshippers' by Islamic terrorist groups such as ISIS, who have associated Tawûsê Melek with Shaitan (Islamic/Arab name) or Satan. This is not only deeply offensive to the Yazidis but quite simply wrong.
The 3rd August 2014, ISIS perpetrated the latest of 74 genocides that Yazidis have suffered throughout history. This genocide led to the extermination of tens of thousands of people and the exodus of many others from their ancestral lands in Sinjar (Iraqi Kurdistan).
Two years later, in the refugee camps of Diyarbakir and Batman (Turkish Kurdistan), their daily lives revolve around the memory of the genocide, the claim of their identity, and the uncertainty about a future that they don’t know where it will take them or when it will come.
* My photobook 3/8 is based on this project.
