Thread by @BrendaStoter

The mother of Majdal (see @hetvergetenvolk) has died. For years, we tried to reunite him with his mother in Germany. The last weeks, we tried to arrange an emergency visa for him and his sister Sipan as the mother was very ill. They didn’t get one, and now it’s too late. #yezidi

Majdal and Sipan are from Kocho, Sinjar. They were both kidnapped by IS, along with their mother and siblings. Their mother lived in Germany since 2015. She was part of a special asylum program for Yezidi’s. Majdal escaped in 2017, Sipan in 2021. Video of their reunification:

Majdal was 14 when he escaped from IS. We tried to apply for family reunification, but nothing worked out. In Germany, authorities said they should apply in Iraq, and in Iraq they said they should arrange it in Germany. For years, they were sent back and forth.

Ngo’s, organisations, politicians, lawyers, activists - many people were informed about this case. Some tried to help, some apologised (“Sorry, the program stopped/Germany doesn’t want to bring in boys”), others didn’t even bother to reply. Years passed by, and Majdal turned 18.

Sipan was rescued in the summer of 2021. She was in captivity for 7 years. Just like Majdal, she asked to see her mother, to be reunited with her. The mother was ill, in a wheelchair, so she couldn’t travel to Iraq. Here you see her begging for help:

The last time she saw them was 2014, in captivity. When she saw how Sipan was taken by an IS fighter, she got a stroke. In Germany, she got another stroke, and ended up in a wheelchair. She also suffered from severe depression - a direct result of not being able to see her kids.

A month ago, the mother became ill again, and she was taken to the hospital, where the doctors put her in a coma. Her last wish was to see her children before she died. Many people, ngo’s and organisations tried to contact the German consulate in Erbil for weeks…

…for an emergency visa. The doctor in Germany sent letters. Again, it didn’t work out. They never pick up their phone, the website system doesn’t seem to work, and emails remain unanswered. Majdal and Sipan couldn’t even get an appointment at the consulate.

So again, weeks of typical Iraqi bureaucracy and westen anxiety for refugees (“what if they don’t return to Iraq?!”) went by. She has now passed away without being able to see her children for the last time.

I can’t express how sad and angry I am. And I can’t even imagine what Sipan and Majdal are going through right now. There is something seriously wrong with the system if we treat victims of genocide like this. It’s completely rotten.

It’s a shame that neither Majdal, who was 14 when he was rescued from IS, nor Sipan were reunited with their mother in Germany. It’s even a greater shame that they never got the chance to say goodbye. The mother had many diseases, but in the end she died of a broken heart.

I do not only blame @GermanyInKRI, I also blame the people who could have done something but didn’t. If you bring Yezidi survivors to Germany you have an ongoing responsibility towards them. You have to reunite the children with their mothers in Germany after they escape. ASAP.

Her name was Majida. She was a lovely woman who deserved so much more. #rip

I forgot to mention that their father died in 2014. He was killed by IS. Majdal and Sipan are now orphans.

Did you contact [name any organisation possible]? Yes, all were contacted. And they all did nothing. I am fed up with being polite - I am not gonna stay silent anymore. The same organisations got visas immediately for “advocacy” in Europe or elsewhere.

I don’t think I will ever have peace with what happened. At the age of 80 I will probably still burst into tears when I remember Majdal, Sipan and their mother.

Sipan and Majdal went to the German consulate in Erbil, and they were sent away with the message “we will call you when you can come.” Listen to Sipans desperate message on fb. “My mother is dead, let me at least go to her funeral.”

facebook.com/10007249008469…