ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The largest Yazidi community in the world is found in Germany where over 200,000 members of the ethnoreligious group live, Germany’s integration minister told Rudaw last week. Germany on Thursday recognized the Islamic State (ISIS) crimes against Yazidis as “genocide.” Reem Alabali-Radovan, Germany’s state minister for integration, spoke to Rudaw the previous day, saying the move would play a “significant role” for the status of Yazidis and a “historical move.” She also said that her country is a top destination for those Yazidis who want to live abroad. “Following the ISIS crimes in 2014, Germany’s states launched special programs to receive refugees. Therefore, the biggest Yazidi diaspora is in Germany. Over 200,000 Yazidis live in Germany. The German government takes steps [in relation to this issue] and this is very important for me,” the federal minister told Rudaw’s Alla Shally. ISIS attacked the disputed town of Shingal in the summer of 2014, killing and kidnapping thousands of Yazidis, with the fate of a large number of them remaining unclear. More than 6,000 Yazidis were kidnapped when ISIS attacked their heartland of Shingal in Nineveh province, according to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Office for Rescuing Kidnapped Yazidis. Over 2,000 remain missing. The resolution by the Bundestag urges German courts to take more action against suspects involved in the crimes and to increase financial support for Yazidis. German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock tweeted in the Kurmanji and Sorani dialects of the Kurdish language on Thursday, saying that no parliamentary decision can undo the sufferings of Yazidis but “I am deeply convinced that this decision makes a difference: a crucial step towards acknowledging suffering and towards justice for the survivors.” Germany has been an essential member of the global coalition against ISIS. “The federal government does many things [for Yazidis]. For instance, it has a program for Yazidis in Iraq and the [Kurdistan] Region. Germany also provides financial support to the area [Shingal] which has been destroyed,” the German minister told Rudaw. She added that Germany also provides psychological support to the survivors.
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