ERBIL — Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani on Thursday initiated the executive phase of the Kojo residential village project in Sinjar District, northern Iraq.

Kojo, a Yezidi village located south of the Sinjar Mountains in Nineveh province, gained international recognition after the 2014 genocide by the Islamic State (IS).

In August 2014, the Islamic State launched a brutal campaign against the Yezidi minority, involving ethnic cleansing, mass executions, forced conversions, and widespread sexual violence. Over 6,500 women and children were enslaved, and more than 350,000 Yezidi were displaced, according to UN reports. Thousands were killed.

The Kurdistan Region Parliament officially recognized these atrocities as genocide in 2019, declaring August 3rd as a day of remembrance. In August 2023, Sudani directed the start of reconstruction efforts for Kojo village, part of broader initiatives to rebuild the Yezidi homeland.