Gaza: Israel rescues young Yazidi woman kidnapped by ISIS as a child

Israel rescued a 21-year-old Yazidi woman in the Gaza Strip who had been kidnapped from her home in Iraq in 2014. The young woman was able to be reunited with her family in her home country.

Fawzia Amin Sido, who after being kidnapped by ISIS was taken to Syria, where a Hamas terrorist bought her and took her to Gaza.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that the terrorist who acquired Sido was killed during the war in Gaza, probably in an Israeli offensive.

As reported by Israeli news outlet Ynet, the release of the young woman required a complex political and diplomatic process involving the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), a unit of the Israeli Defense Ministry charged with overseeing civilian policy in the West Bank and facilitating logistical coordination between Israel and Gaza.

The Israeli media outlet added that in recent days, Sido was rescued in a secret operation through the Kerem Shalom crossing on the Israel-Gaza border. She was then transferred to Jordan, and from there went to reunite with her family in Iraq.

'Her story is a reminder of the brutality faced by Yazidi children'

David Saranga, head of the Digital Diplomacy Division of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, said, "Fawzia, a Yazidi girl kidnapped by ISIS from Iraq and brought to Gaza at just 11 years old, has finally been rescued by the Israeli security forces." He added: "For years, she was held captive by a Palestinian Hamas-ISIS member," the name given colloquially in the Jewish state to the terrorist group in Gaza following the Oct. 7 massacre.

"She has now been reunited with her family. Her story is a reminder of the brutality faced by Yazidi children." He added: "Remember, there are still 101 Israelis being held hostage in Gaza."

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Fawzia's release, noting that her liberation was achieved through joint efforts by international intelligence services, although it did not mention Israel. The statement did refer to coordination with the U.S. embassies in Iraq and Jordan.

The genocide perpetrated by ISIS against the Yazidis

In 2014, ISIS began a campaign of conquests in which it seized a third of Iraq and large parts of Syria. At that time, this Islamic terrorist group carried out a genocide against the Yazidis, who they consider infidels.

It is estimated that ISIS terrorists murdered some 5,000 Yazidis and captured some 7,000 women, teenagers and girls belonging to this minority, who were turned into sex slaves.