It was a scenario so hard to fathom that Kurdish-Swedish director Hogir Hirori struggled to comprehend the subject matter while creating his latest documentary, Sabaya.
But, he says he was on a mission to expose the "preposterous acts" perpetrated by IS against Yazidi women.
“I wanted to show how much Yazidi girls and women have suffered at the hands of IS and I cannot begin to explain to you what they’ve been through,” he tells SBS Kurdish.
“I cannot comprehend, nor understand how IS could do this to Yazidi women and girls - it is beyond me.”
He's referring to what he witnessed in Al-Hol, a notorious refugee camp in southeast Syria where 73,000 people are being held due to suspected links to IS.
A promotional image of the film which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in February, 2021. Source: Lolav Media/Ginestra Film
But among the supporters of that fundamentalist organisation at that camp are also victims, including Yazidi women and young girls, who have been held captive as slaves.
“When IS was defeated [in March 2019] they were all brought into this camp, however among these IS families were also Yazidi girls and women who they threatened to kill if they told the camp who they really were,” Hirori explains.
“The girls were captured when they were very young and brainwashed by telling them 'if anyone here knows you’re Yazidi they will kill you' because they have become ‘sex slaves’ and have lost their honour.”
As the camp is so large, Hirori says it cannot be fully controlled and that’s when a lot of things, such as the torment of Yazidi women, occur in secret.
Photos of Yazidi women and girls held by IS as Sabaya, or 'sex slaves' in Syria’s Al-Hol camp. Source: Lolav Media/Ginestra Film
“A lot of people sneak in and out. A lot of the IS people have weapons, such as knives, guns and also make TNT mines, which is why this camp is called ‘the most notorious camp in the Middle East’.”
Hirori explains that when IS captured Yazidi towns, they took many women and young girls as Sabaya, a word that can mean “female prisoner of war”, "captive woman", but also as “sex slave".
“[They believe] they can do whatever they want to do with them, including marry them, have their children or sell them in the markets.
“If the IS ‘prince’ asks the Yazidi woman to do something and she refuses, she’s then tortured very harshly by the ‘prince’.”
Hirori says that the only time a captured woman can taste freedom from IS is when she has a child, however even then, that child is sent to a religious school and taught how to fight and is eventually brainwashed.
“When the child’s father dies then they'll inherit his position but if he’s alive he has the right [according to IS] to do whatever they like with the woman; sell her, keep her or marry others.”
The film is part of a three-part documentary series - which includes 'The Girl Who Saved My Life' and 'The Deminer' - that follows the actions of the Yazidi Home Centre in northeast Syria as they infiltrate the refugee camp.
As the editor and cinematographer of the film, Hirori has preserved the so-called “Sabaya” girls’ stories while protecting their identities along the way.
“My point of making these documentaries is to show the world what’s happening to people such as the Kurds or Yazidis and Muslims in Kurdistan as a result of war and IS.
Hogir Hirori, the director of 'Sabaya' Source: Elias Berglund
“All they’re asking for is their rights and the consequence is suffering, and mostly the innocent suffer.”
He says editing the film impacted his mental health.
An image from the film of a woman with her child in Syria’s Al-Hol camp. Source: Lolav Media/Ginestra Film
“Usually someone is hired to edit the documentaries that I film and direct, but this time, because of the pandemic lockdown in Sweden at the time, I could not get anyone.
“I grew a very special and close relationship with the people I was filming, but I had to put my feelings aside and edit nearly 92 hours of film.
“So, I had to focus on editing and directing, and to put my personal feelings aside.”
A release date for the film has not been announced, though London-based distributor Dogwoof acquired it and is currently shopping the global rights, according to Variety.
