Iraq: Yazidi couple separated for nine years by IS remarry

A Yazidi couple separated for nine years by the Islamic State (IS) group renewed their wedding vows in Dohuk, Iraq after their long separation, the Kurdistan-based Rudaw reported on Saturday.

Samia Smo and Dakhil Hassan were married for approximately a month before IS militants seized Sinjar, northern Iraq, in August 2014 before carrying out a genocide against the ethnoreligious group and forcing a large number of women into sexual slavery.

Smo was one of those enslaved and was taken to Mosul and subsequently Syria by IS members.

The Yazidi woman, alongside five others, was recently reunited with her family earlier this month following years of captivity.

The women's rescue was announced by prominent Yazidi activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Nadia Murad earlier this month, who said that the rescued women were flown to Erbil to receive psychological care.

ئەو ژنەی نۆ ساڵ مێردەکەی چاوەڕوانی کردووە، بەجلی بووکێنییەوە دەڵێت: وادەزانم لە خەودام pic.twitter.com/CO4iWNulYf

— Rudaw (@Rudawkurdish) June 16, 2023

In a bid to celebrate her return, Smo’s family decided to mark the occasion with a wedding for the couple. Smo said the ceremony was "just like a dream".

The bride, who wore a white wedding dress and traditional gold jewellery told Rudaw: "I can’t believe it. I feel like I’m in a dream. I’m very happy."

Hundreds of people were present at the wedding, including the families of the women rescued alongside Smo.

"I have always waited for the day my wife comes back," her husband said, saying he's "very happy."

To further cement the reunion – and their love – the couple tattooed each other’s names on their hands.

The Yazidi group, who mostly inhabit the Sinjar mountains and its surroundings in Northern Iraq, were subjected to a genocide which killed thousands.

Over 6,000 were also kidnapped by IS militants, including women who were forced into sexual slavery.

Around 2,700 women and children remain missing, with work underway to uncover their fate. Moreover, many women have been found in Syria, namely the notorious al-Hol camp, and have been handed over by relevant authorities.