In August of 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria launched an attack on the Yazidi population in the Sinjar district of Northern Iraq. Yazidis are one of Iraq's oldest religious minorities, living in the border areas close to Turkey and Syria. Before 2014, there were an estimated half a million Yazidis. During the August 2014 siege, over 5,000 Yazidis were killed or went missing in and around the Sinjar area, in an ISIS sanctioned campaign to cleanse the population of what they called devil worshippers. Roughly the same number were abducted and enslaved to ISIS fighters. Figures vary widely, but it is believed that up to 3,000 people, mostly women, and some children, are still currently being held in captivity. ISIS systematically sought to enslave Yazidi women with their children, and are passed around through the slave market, with virgin girls fetching higher prices. Stories from escapees have detailed how women were bought, sold, raped, and forcibly married to ISIS fighters. Hundreds of women remain missing despite the fall of Raqqa in October 2017.
Captain Khatoon Khider, center, speaks to the women in her battalion as they fortify their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq on Monday, August 29, 2016. The 'Sun Ladies' as they are known, are made up of several hundred Yazidi women, some who were formerly enslaved by ISIS, are attempting to fight back against the extremist group with the help of the Kurdish Peshmerga through training, funds, and arms. Ms. Khider was a renowned Yazidi singer before ISIS attacked the Yazidi population in northern Iraq.
Soldiers with the Yazidi 'Sun Ladies' run laps during morning exercises at their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Tuesday, August 30, 2016.
The 'Sun Ladies', made up of several hundred Yazidi women, some who were formerly enslaved by ISIS, are attempting to fight back against the extremist group with the help of the Kurdish Peshmerga through training, funds, and arms.
Women of the Yazidi 'Sun Ladies' battalion fill up sandbags to fortify their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Monday, August 29, 2016. The 'Sun Ladies', made up of several hundred Yazidi women, some who were formerly enslaved by ISIS, are attempting to fight back against the extremist group with the help of the Kurdish Peshmerga through training, funds, and arms.
Lina, a soldier with the Yazidi 'Sun Ladies' battalion, sleeps just before dawn at their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Tuesday, August 30, 2016.
The 'Sun Ladies', made up of several hundred Yazidi women, some who were formerly enslaved by ISIS, are attempting to fight back against the extremist group with the help of the Kurdish Peshmerga through training, funds, and arms.
Captain Khatoon Khider, center, is assisted by her deputy in the battalion's office near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq on Tuesday, August 30, 2016. Above Captain Khider is a poster depicting the Barzani family, including Masoud Barzani (left) the leader of Iraqi Kurdistan Region.
Soldiers with the Yazidi 'Sun Ladies' battalion relax during down time at their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Tuesday, August 30, 2016.
A soldier with the Yazidi 'Sun Ladies' brushes her hair during morning preparations at their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Tuesday, August 30, 2016.
A soldier with the Yazidi 'Sun Ladies' battalion stands on guard duty at their base near Sinjar, in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Monday, August 29, 2016. The 'Sun Ladies', made up of several hundred Yazidi women, some who were formerly enslaved by ISIS, are attempting to fight back against the extremist group with the help of the Kurdish Peshmerga through training, funds, and arms.
Suad, 29, poses for a photo with her two young children Farah (left) and Faraj (right), in Khanke, Iraqi Kurdistan, on Wednesday, August 31, 2016. Suad, whose name has been changed, was abducted with her two children in 2014 when ISIS overran her village. Until this day, she does not know the fate of her husband. She was held in captivity and forcibly married to an ISIS fighter who repeatedly raped her. Her son Faraj, 2, speaks only Arabic rather than Kurdish, as a result of being raised around Arabic speaking ISIS fighters. Suad and her two children managed to escape only after a highly complicated rescue plan was enacted.
Suzanne, 20, whose name has been changed, poses for a photo at the Jinda Center, a women's rights organization, after an interview with Vogue on Wednesday, August 31, 2016 in Dohuk, Iraqi Kurdistan. Suzanne, from a village that was overrun by ISIS, was forcibly married to an American ISIS fighter, and repeatedly raped during her captivity.
An overview of the Yazidi Temple in Lalish, Iraqi Kurdistan, November 11, 2016.
Visitors take pictures by the mural of the Peacock Angel at the temple in Lalish, Iraqi Kurdistan on November 11, 2016.
A woman waits to have her baby baptized with holy water on the grounds of the temple in Lalish, Iraqi Kurdistan on November 11, 2016.
Men volunteer to clean and dust the whole temple grounds before the end of the day in Lalish, Iraqi Kurdistan on November 11, 2016.
A Yazidi woman hangs laundry outside her tent at the Shariya camp for internally displaced persons near Dohuk in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Thursday, September 1, 2016. Shariya is host to nearly 19,000 Yazidis who fled from Sinjar two years ago during the ISIS onslaught.
Yazidi men sit atop a hill overlooking the Shariya camp for internally displaced persons near Dohuk in Kurdistan, Iraq, on Thursday, September 1, 2016. Shariya is host to nearly 19,000 Yazidis who fled from Sinjar two years ago during the ISIS onslaught.