In 2014, the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) conducted a violent campaign against civilians in northern Iraq, targeting ethnic and religious minorities through murder, rape, torture, forced conversion, kidnapping, displacement, and destruction of cultural property. In 2015, the Museum determined that IS had perpetrated genocide against the Yezidis and crimes against humanity against other religious and ethnic minorities. By early 2019, the US government announced the territorial defeat of IS. However, the Simon-Skjodt Center has warned that religious minorities and other civilians remain at risk of future atrocities. Read our reports on the violence and the situation for survivors in the aftermath.
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“Our Generation is Gone”
This Bearing Witness report documents the Islamic State’s Targeting of Iraqi Minorities in Ninewa, Iraq, through interviews with survivors.
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Communities at Risk
This 2016 report lays out strategies to protect targeted groups and counter the political climate and lack of stability that allowed IS to flourish.
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Risk of Mass Killing
Our quantitative assessment, from the Early Warning Project, estimates the risk of a new mass killing in Iraq.
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US Government Declares Genocide Committed by Islamic State
In March 2016, the US Government acknowledged that IS perpetrated genocide and crimes against humanity against religious minorities in Iraq.
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The Portal
Through this installation, Museum visitors spoke with people who had fled the genocidal crimes of IS in Northern Iraq and the war crimes of Syria’s Assad regime.
This Section
Genocide Prevention
Country Case Studies
Find information on historical cases of genocide and other atrocities.