Victims Voices, Silencing Terrorism: Iman Abdullah

Iman speaking at a UNODC event on the role of media and awareness in terrorism.

Iman Abdullah, a 22-year-old from Sinjar was kidnapped with another girl and held captive for a year. “What we witnessed, particularly the girls among us, was truly horrific. It was a traumatic experience, and I was only 13 years old at the time. ISIS was trafficking and raping girls, in addition to various forms of torture. After that period ended, it was hard for me to come to terms with what had happened,” Iman told UNODC.

Iman is one of many survivors of terrorism who took part in the UNODC psychosocial support programme within the project “Supporting victims of terrorism within the criminal justice framework, including psychological support” in Iraq, which is implemented in partnership with the Lebanese Association for Victims of Terrorism (AVT-L) and is funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

“I participated in this psychological support programme so that I could tell my story, be strong, and get my message across to the world. After participating in that programme, I gained valuable experience in assisting girls, as there are thousands of them who have become victims of the terrorist ISIS,” Iman emphasized.

When noting her outlook for the future in relation to the rights of victims of terrorism, Iman added that “I hope the programme will also help other victims as there are thousands in camps who are in need of support. I hope that we will return to our regions and live a normal life like any human being, as these are our rights.”

This story, which is the fourth in a five-part series, marks the International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism which takes place on 21 August. This series is originally featured as part of the UNODC “Victims’ Voices, Silencing Terrorism” campaign which was conducted in June 2023 through a combination of social media outreach and on-the-ground presence in Baghdad, Iraq. The campaign reached 23 million people in Iraq and the Middle East and North Africa region and was done in collaboration with Iraqi authorities, the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and the Association of Victims of Terrorism in Lebanon (AVT-L) and funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The campaign focused on providing an alternative narrative to that of terrorist groups by raising awareness of the resilience of victims of terrorism and the importance of having their voices heard. The messages and stories they tell have the power to silence the negative and harmful fear-oriented messages spread by terrorist groups. The campaign featured several victims of terrorism supported by the project, as they used their voices to tell their own stories of resilience and overcoming and spoke of how more victims should be encouraged to do the same. The campaign also highlighted the importance of understanding who is a victim of terrorism, what are victims’ needs, the role of the community, and the achievements of the project.

Click on the following links to watch videos of the campaign:

Part 1 – “We asked victims of terrorism in Iraq to tell us their story, this is what they said”

Part 2 – “Their journey of hope, victims of terrorism in Iraq”

Part 3 – “Impact driven –supporting victims of terrorism project in Iraq”

Full Documentary – “Victims' Voices, Silencing Terrorism" Campaign

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Victims Voices, Silencing Terrorism: Iman Abdullah