Erbil,Iraq, August 3rd, 2016 - Today, in the second anniversary of genocidal act committed by ISIS against Yezidi in Sinjar areas, KRG High Council of Women Affairs reiterates the following points, while condemning the terrorist actions of Daesh in Sinjar and other nearby territories:
- Military confrontation with terrorist groups is very effective in distancing Daesh threats and invasion.

The effectiveness of military attacks is already felt over the past 2 years in Kurdistan Region in line with Peshmerga forces fighting in the frontlines and they were able to kick out Daesh in some areas and protect the cities from Daesh attacks. 

At the same time, the security forces through the support of local people have been very active in protecting the civilians.
- We believe that the international community has a very great task and responsibility in combating those terrorist groups and uprooting them not only in Iraq and Kurdistan region, but also all over the world. The international community has to root out the terrorist mentality which unfortunately it has spread in some of the countries which have got very strong military forces. This terrorist mentality is now felt among the young people. It is not very common, but it will be, if it is not stopped through planned programs and long term interventions.
- What is related to us as High Council of Women Affairs is that we focus on the position of women in combating extremism and terrorism.

Women as citizens (due to their social positions) and as an important factor at home play a vital role in raising their children properly along with other educational entities such as kindergartens, schools, and universities.
- We find it very necessary that women empowerment should be considered in the very beginning of humanitarian assistance, so that women are capable of combating terror. This is particularly important in the IDP camps where women and children face a lot of violence, since the camp circumstances will affect their ability and negatively reflect on the upbringing of their children who might adopt extremist tendencies.

This high number of IDPs in Kurdistan region in the camps and non-camp settings has caused the emergence of some phenomena such as polygamy, child marriage …etc that had been reduced before through the efforts of Kurdistan Region Parliament, Government, Judicial authority and CSOs.

This will have a negative impact on the society and the implementation of laws related with women rights and the plans/programs of formal/informal institutions working in this area, particularly the Iraqi national action plan for UNSCR 1325. This is a great challenge facing Kurdistan region especially in the face of the financial crisis which Kurdistan region is suffering from for two and half years.

We would like to present some general suggestions in this respect so that they will be hopefully put into effect through the support of local and international actors and develop practical plans for their implementation accordingly:
- Identifying a specified amount of assistance from the donations for women empowerment programs, child protection and rescuing the ones still under Daesh captivity.
- Ratifying the proposed resolution submitted by High Council of Women on the condemnation of sexual attacks and enslavement of Yezidi and other minority women by Daesh. We find it important that this proposed resolution will be adopted by the UN Security Council.
- Recognizing August 3rd in the national calendar of KRG as the national day for combating sexual violence in conflict. 
- Enhancing cooperation and coordination among all national and international actors including the local CSOs to make the best use of funds and assistance obtained from the donors.

KRG High Council of Women Affairs