Sinjar in Iraq: the Yazidis

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In the Sinjar district of northern Iraq, Yazidis return to streets and homes destroyed by war. Portraits of residents and landscapes of ruins.

A man sitting on a red chair in a war-damaged house, Sinjar – Alexander Bee photo

A Yazidi man standing in his damaged home, Sinjar – Alexander Bee photo

Portrait of an elderly Yazidi man wrapped in a blanket, Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

A Yazidi woman smiling at a tent window, Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

Fruit and vegetable market in front of ruins, Sinjar, Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

Destroyed staircase inside a ruined building in Sinjar, Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

Rusted rebar and rubble of a collapsed building in Sinjar – Alexander Bee photo

Gutted and burnt-out building in Sinjar, Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

Destroyed street in Sinjar lined with ruined buildings, Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

This photo story in Sinjar in Iraq shows the difficult return of the Yazidis to a region marked by war. The images, taken in November 2022, combine landscapes of ruins, market scenes and portraits of residents.

Sinjar in Iraq, eight years after the Islamic State offensive

In northern Iraq, the Sinjar district is home to a large Yazidi community. On 3 August 2014, the Islamic State occupied the city of Sinjar after launching an offensive against Iraqi Kurdistan. Thousands of people fled. According to the United Nations refugee agency, 20,000 to 30,000 of them were trapped within days in the mountains north of the city.

Gutted and burnt-out building in Sinjar, Iraq – Sinjar in Iraq – Alexander Bee photo

On Mount Sinjar, the lack of water, the winter cold and fear made survival very difficult. Later, many families reached Kurdistan, and some then came back to their home region.

A difficult return for the Yazidis

In November 2022, about a hundred tents still stand around a road crossing the mountain. Rain turns the paths into mud and isolates each family. In a single tent, three families, about twenty people, may live together. Some residents have lived there for six to eight years.

In the town of Sinjar, the photographs show gutted buildings, destroyed staircases and rusty reinforcing bars. Yet life resumes: a fruit and vegetable market sets up in front of the ruins, a woman smiles at the window of her tent, men pose in their damaged homes. These portraits give a face to those who return despite everything.

The people of Sinjar appear here without staging. Their faces, their gestures and the ruins around them tell, better than any caption, what it means to start again after the war. You can browse the gallery above and open each image in large size.

This story is part of Alexander Bee’s documentary photography portfolio. You can also discover Lake Assal: the salt caravans or Displaced persons camp. To buy a print or use a photo, contact me. To learn more: The Sinjar Mountains on Wikipedia.

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Sinjar: Yazidis After the War

Sinjar in Iraq, eight years after the Islamic State offensive

A difficult return for the Yazidis