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How we met Mustafa


August 2014

In august 2014 Islamic State (IS) invaded Sinjar, the area where the Yezidis live, with the aim of destroying the people – the umpteenth attempt at genocide against the Yezidis in their history. As a people with their own religion, the Yezidis are facing much hatred in predominantly Islamic Iraq.
 
IS murdered thousands of Yezidis,raped and kidnapped women and children and destroyed buildings and infrastructure in Sinjar. The survivors fled and eventually found refuge in camps in Kurdistan, the nearby autonomous region in Iraq. The actions of IS have left deep wounds in the Yezidi community. Many of the abducted women and children have still not been found.
 

October 2022

In october 2022 Marie-José van Leeuwen travelled to one of the refugee camps for Yezidis, Mam Rashan, as a volunteer. What she found there were many damaged and traumatised Yezidi refugees. Marie-José van Leeuwen: "It's unbelievable what these people have been through. When you look into their eyes, you see can their trauma and feel their sorrow. Yet you can also see how resilient they are and try to make the best of it. I had brought 400 flutes with me from the Netherlands and taught everyone in the camp who wanted to learn how to play the flute. Music helps with trauma processing. I will never forget the enthusiasm with which young and old made music and the joy it brought. What I will also not forget is the love given to me by the people in the camp. It’s hard to imagine a more peaceful people."

In the camp, Marie-José met Mustafa Dakheel Sharaf, the teacher at the small school in the camp and also an important figure in the camp’s social life.
 
After returning to the Netherlands, Marie-José decided to help the Yezidis in Mam Rashan by collecting clothes for them in the Netherlands. Her efforts have been successful: several lorries have already travelled to the area to deliver the clothes. Because the children love football, sportswear was also collected. Mustafa was in charge of distributing everything among the camp’s inhabitants.

Juli 2024

The government started to clear the camps and ordered the Yezidis to return to the area where they originally lived, Sinjar. But the deep scars of the violence are still visible there. The social and physical infrastructure has not yet been restored. Many houses and cultural and religious buildings and also schools have been completely or partially destroyed. And there is little or no money for their reconstruction.
 
It is astonishing and admirable how resilient the Yezidis are in these difficult circumstances. Despite their great sorrow and trauma, they are trying to rebuild their own lives and the community as a whole,as best they can,with what they have there. One of the driving forces behind all of this is Mustafa, who also returned to Sinjar last year. While many Yezidis are now trying to seek refuge in other countries, he has chosen to stay with his young family and help his community wherever he can.

October 2025

Mustafa has a dream, which focuses on the youngest generation of Yezidis. Seeing them struggle, he wants to help them in their development. His dream is to set up a centre for children aged 3-6 in the village where he lives, which is called Borek. The centre will not only offer the children education, but also things like a midday meal and a programme focused on physical and mental health. This will help the children in their development and better prepare them for further education. Everything will be centred on a better future for the children and, in that way, for the entire Yezidi community.

Marie-José has seen Mustafa’s drive in trying to support his people with her own eyes. We want to help Mustafa realise his dream. But we cannot do it alone. The first step is to renovate the building Mustafa thinks would be suitable for the children’s centre. This renovation is estimated to cost around €10,000. We hope you are willing to offer financial support to realise Mustafa's dream and help the children. By doing so,the Yezidi community will also get a push in the right direction. After all, the youth have the future!
 
Every donation, big or small, would be welcome. Thank you very much in advance!