The Iraqi Parliament has approved a law that for the first time recognises the crimes committed by ISIS against Yazidi women and children, and other ethnic and religious groups, as genocide and crimes against humanity.
In June 2014, ISIS militants swept through large areas in northern and western Iraq, taking control of nearly a third of the country.
Thousands of Yazidi women and children were enslaved by the extremists along with others from Christian and Shiite Turkmen and Shabak communities.
Nobel Peace Prize-winner Nadia Murad, who endured enslavement under ISIS, described the law as “an important first step in acknowledging the gender-based trauma of sexual violence and need for tangible redress".
“Implementation of the law will need to be focused comprehensively, supporting and sustainably reintegrating survivors,” Ms Murad wrote on Twitter after Monday’s approval.
The law stipulates that the survivors will be entitled to financial compensation, pensions and salaries.
It calls for the establishment of a state-run department to look after the survivors, rehabilitate them and help them to reintegrate into society.
Parliamentary approval is “a victory for our daughters, the victims who endured ISIS ugliest violations and genocides", Iraqi President Barham Salih tweeted.
“Efforts to find out the fate of others who are still missing and kidnapped, and redress for the victims must be continued, and to hold perpetrators accountable."
During the ISIS blitz, the militants separated the women from their male relatives, selling them into sexual slavery and sending the men to their deaths.
About 7,000 women and girls were captured and sold into slavery, with nearly half eventually escaping.
Almost 2,800 are either still missing or in captivity.
For centuries the Yazidis, who follow an ancient monotheistic religion, lived in the mountains in north-west Iraq where their ancestral villages, temples and shrines are located.
There were about 700,000 Yazidis in Iraq before 2014, their leaders said.
Many of them are believed to have fled the country, mainly to the West.
Those still in the country live in camps or have returned to their areas despite the damage their property suffered.
Qosty Byogaani
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Specs
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
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Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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if you go
The flights
Flydubai flies to Podgorica or nearby Tivat via Sarajevo from Dh2,155 return including taxes. Turkish Airlines flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Podgorica via Istanbul; alternatively, fly with Flydubai from Dubai to Belgrade and take a short flight with Montenegro Air to Podgorica. Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Podgorica via Belgrade. Flights cost from about Dh3,000 return including taxes. There are buses from Podgorica to Plav.
The tour
While you can apply for a permit for the route yourself, it’s best to travel with an agency that will arrange it for you. These include Zbulo in Albania (www.zbulo.org) or Zalaz in Montenegro (www.zalaz.me).
