Lalish Center Honors President Barzani, Peshmerga on Sinjar Liberation

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Eleven years after the Peshmerga drove ISIS from Sinjar (Shingal), the Lalish Cultural and Social Center in Duhok paid tribute to the historic role of President Barzani and the Peshmerga forces, while warning that a large part of the Ezidi community still languishes in displacement camps, unable to return home.

The center’s high commission issued a statement marking the 11th anniversary of Shingal’s liberation by the Peshmerga, carried out under the direct supervision of President Barzani.

The statement said: “Eleven years ago, on Nov. 13, 2015, the Peshmerga forces of Kurdistan, under the direct supervision of President Barzani and with air support from coalition aircraft, liberated the city of Shingal from the filthy hands of ISIS terrorists in a historic operation.”

The center recalled that Shingal fell to a brutal ISIS attack on Aug. 3, 2014, and was occupied, leading to numerous crimes and massacres against the area’s civilians. A year later, on Aug. 4, 2015, President Barzani pledged to liberate it.

The statement continued: “Exactly 100 days after that pledge, at 7 a.m., the operation to liberate the city began from four directions, with the participation of 7,500 Peshmerga, under the leadership of President Barzani and with coalition air support. On Nov. 13, 2015, President Barzani announced the good news of the city’s liberation from atop Mount Shingal and reaffirmed that this victory was a major military, political and historical achievement for the people of Kurdistan, recorded with the blood and heroism of the Peshmerga.”

The statement stressed that the Peshmerga’s heroism drew wide echoes in international media. It added that Shingal’s liberation became a gateway to freeing surrounding areas and, later, to retaking the center of Nineveh province.

The center said: “We at the Lalish Center value the historic role of President Barzani, the Peshmerga forces of Kurdistan and all the heroes who recorded this epic of glory with their blood. We also extend our thanks and appreciation to the coalition forces for their continued support of the Peshmerga in defeating ISIS.”

The statement noted that the anniversary comes while many Ezidis remain displaced. It said: “This occasion is being marked while a large number of our Ezidi sisters and brothers, 11 years on, still languish in displacement and in camps, and because of the lack of stability and of essential services, they have been unable to return to their homes.”

Concluding its statement, the Lalish Center urged all relevant parties to act without delay. It called on them to rebuild Shingal, settle the file on recognition of the Ezidi genocide, and compensate those affected and the victims.