Frozen in the Past – Survivor stories from the 2014 Yezidi genocide

In August 2014, the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) committed genocide against the Yezidis in the Shingal region of Iraq. Thousands were murdered, abducted, enslaved and tortured. The survivors of the seriously traumatized community are still healing the deep wounds of these crimes, the 74th Ferman (genocide) in their history – and for justice. Frozen in the Past gives the survivors a voice. In haunting, unvarnished stories, they tell of imprisonment, rape, loss and the immeasurable suffering they had to endure. But despite the unimaginable cruelty, their stories also reveal courage, resilience and an unbroken will to regain hope. They remind us that documenting history is not just about recording facts but about honoring the humanity of those who lived through it. Rawan Fouad Abdi has spent years collecting these testimonies to come to terms with the crimes and to ensure that the world is listening. Frozen in the Past is thus more than a collection of survival stories – it is an appeal against forgetting and a call for justice.