A 12-year-old girl was tied up, beaten and raped by seven different ISIS fighters when she was kidnapped from her home in the Iraqi region of Yazidi.
The suffering of Jalila is just one of a number of harrowing accounts given by women who have escaped from the brutal terrorist organization.
The study undertaken by Human Rights Watch found fighters were kidnapping women and children as young as eight, forcing them to marry or raping them repeatedly.
'They were like animals... Once they took the girls out, they would rape them and bring them back to exchange for new girls. The girls' ages ranged from eight to 30 years...'
Rape and other forms of sexual violence, sexual slavery, cruel treatment, and other abuses committed during an armed conflict violate the laws of
war. Better support is needed for children and women who survive such attacks.
Along with a lack of provision for psycho-social treatment, there is a reluctance in the community to accept treatment, despite many women continuing to feel suicidal after their ordeal.
Musical Healing, however,
comes in a culturally
acceptable form!
"Yazidi women and girls who escaped ISIS still face enormous challenges and continuing trauma from their experience," Liesl Gerntholtz,
the women's rights director at Human Rights Watch said.
"They need urgent help and support to recover their health and move on with their lives."
