- Byname of:
- Nadia Murad Basee Taha
- Born:
- 1993, Kawjū (Kocho), Iraq (age 33)
- Founder:
- Nadia’s Initiative
- Awards And Honors:
- Nobel Prize (2018)
Nadia Murad
-
Who is Nadia Murad?
Nadia Murad, born in 1993 in Kawjû (Kocho), Iraq, is a Yazidi human rights activist who, in August 2014, was kidnapped by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL; also called ISIS) and sold into sex slavery. After escaping three months later, she began speaking out about human trafficking and sexual violence, especially as these issues pertained to Yazidi women, and about the mistreatment of the Yazidi community more broadly.
In 2016, the UN appointed her Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking. In 2018, she and Congolese physician Denis Mukwege were corecipients of the Nobel Prize for Peace. Murad founded Nadia’s Initiative, an organization advocating for the rights of women and minorities and assisting in redeveloping minority communities facing crisis. She also wrote a memoir about her capture and escape, The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State.
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Where is Nadia Murad from?
Nadia Murad was born in 1993 in Kawjû (Kocho), Iraq. In August 2014, ISIL captured her village, and Murad, a member of the Yazīdī community, was kidnapped and sold into sex slavery. After escaping three months later, she became a human rights activist, speaking out against human trafficking and sexual violence, especially regarding Yazīdī women. In 2015, Murad went to Germany as part of a refugee program and, in December of that year, spoke before the UN Security Council on human trafficking. In 2016, the UN appointed her Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking.
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What happened to Nadia Murad during the Yazidi genocide?
Nadia Murad, a Yazidi human rights activist, was kidnapped by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in August 2014 during a campaign to capture Yazidi villages for human trafficking. Her village was captured on August 15, 2014, and the men, including six of Murad’s brothers, were massacred. Some older women, including Murad’s mother, were also killed. Murad was taken to Mosul, Iraq, and sold into sex slavery. She was bought and sold several times before escaping in November with the help of a Muslim family. More than 5,200 Yazidi women in total were trafficked by ISIL in 2014, while about 5,000 men were killed.
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How did Nadia Murad become a human rights activist?
Nadia Murad, a Yazidi human rights activist, was kidnapped by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in August 2014 and sold into sex slavery. After escaping three months later, she began speaking out against human trafficking and sexual violence, especially regarding Yazidi women, while also addressing the broader mistreatment of the Yazidi community.
In December 2015, Murad spoke before the UN Security Council on human trafficking, which led to many interview requests. Her testimonies highlighted the Yazidi community's suffering, the horrors of ISIL, and the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war. The UN appointed her Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking in 2016. She also wrote a memoir, The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State, and founded Nadia’s Initiative, an organization advocating for the rights of women and minorities.
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What are some of Nadia Murad’s main goals as an activist?
Nadia Murad, a Yazidi human rights activist, survived kidnapping and sexual slavery by ISIS in 2014. Since escaping, she has become a prominent voice against human trafficking and sexual violence, particularly affecting Yazidi women.
Murad's activism aims to highlight the suffering of the Yazidi community and to emphasize that sexual violence as a weapon of war is not unique to ISIS.
As the UN's Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking, she advocates for women's and minorities' rights through Nadia’s Initiative, which helps redevelop communities in crisis.
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Why did Nadia Murad receive the Nobel Peace Prize and what impact has she made worldwide?
Nadia Murad, a Yazidi human rights activist, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018, which she shared with Denis Mukwege. The Nobel Prize is awarded to individuals who have done the most to promote peace.
Murad, a survivor of sexual slavery at the hands of ISIS, was recognized for her efforts to combat sexual violence as a weapon of war. Since escaping ISIS in 2014, Murad has spoken out about human trafficking and sexual violence, especially regarding Yazidi women. In 2016, the UN appointed her Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking. Murad founded Nadia’s Initiative, an organization that advocates for women and minorities' rights and helps redevelop communities in crisis.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Nadia Murad (born 1993, Kawjū (Kocho), Iraq) is a Yazīdī human rights activist who was kidnapped by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL; also called ISIS) in August 2014 and sold into sex slavery. She escaped three months later, and shortly thereafter she began speaking out about human trafficking and sexual violence, especially as these issues pertained to Yazīdī women. Murad also spoke about the mistreatment of the Yazīdī community more broadly. She was appointed the United Nations’ Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking in 2016 and received several accolades. In 2018 she was a corecipient, with Congolese physician Denis Mukwege, of the Nobel Prize for Peace.
Capture and escape
In August 2014 ISIL undertook a campaign to capture Yazīdī villages for the purpose of human trafficking. The Yazīdī community, largely located around the Sinjār Mountains in Iraq, had long suffered persecution and discrimination. Unlike many other religious minorities, such as Jews and Christians whose religious proximity to Islam allowed them certain protections through the dhimmah system, the Yazīdīs had often been singled out for persecution on the basis of their teachings. Drawing on this background, the propaganda machine of ISIL was able to target the Yazīdīs as a religiously sanctioned source for sex slavery in an effort to lure young men to join the militant group.
On August 15 Murad’s village of Kawjū (Kocho) was captured by ISIL. The Yazīdīs were rounded up, and the men and women were separated. The men, including six of Murad’s brothers, were massacred. Some older women, including Murad’s mother, were also killed. The rest of the women, including Murad, were taken to Mosul, Iraq, the largest city held by ISIL at the time, to be marketed as sex slaves. More than 5,200 Yazīdī women in total were trafficked by ISIL in 2014, while about 5,000 men were killed.
Murad was bought and sold several times before escaping in November. Her first attempt at escaping had resulted in a gang rape as punishment, and she decided then not to try to escape again. One day, however, she discovered that a door had been left unlocked, and she fled. She found her way into the protection of a Muslim family not connected to ISIL, who helped her escape to Kurdish-controlled territory.
Activism
In 2015 Murad left for Germany as part of a refugee program for survivors of ISIL. In December of that year she was asked to speak before the UN Security Council on human trafficking, an appearance that prompted a number of requests for interviews. Her testimonies not only drew attention to the ongoing suffering of the Yazīdī community and to the horrors of ISIL but also to the fact that sexual violence as a weapon of war is far from unique to ISIL. In 2016 the UN appointed her Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking. She wrote a memoir on her capture and escape, The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State, and founded Nadia’s Initiative, an organization advocating for the rights of women and minorities and assisting in redeveloping minority communities facing crisis.