Victims Voices, Silencing Terrorism: Khairy El-Jabouri

<div style="text-align:justify">Khairy creating clay sculptures as part of a psychosocial activity which entails the use of art as part of a rehabilitation process within the UNODC programme. </div>

Khairy creating clay sculptures as part of a psychosocial activity which entails the use of art as part of a rehabilitation process within the UNODC programme.

“In 2014, we were raided by a large force of ISIS, and my brothers and I were arrested and taken to an unknown destination. I escaped miraculously, but my brothers are missing to this day. We do not know whether they have been executed or remain missing. This has had a profound impact on both me and my family,” Khairy El-Jabouri, 33-years-old, told UNODC.

On his path to overcome and rebuild his life, Khairy participated in the psychosocial support sessions provided within the UNODC project “Supporting victims of terrorism within the criminal justice framework, including psychological support” in Iraq, which was implemented in partnership with the Lebanese Association for Victims of Terrorism (AVT-L) and funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands. “The programme served as a turning point that helped us to move forward from a place of vulnerability to a position where we could engage with our community, speak out and confront challenges more effectively,” he noted.

"We strongly urge organizations to provide support for our regions because families of missing persons do not have resources to resort to. These organizations should provide psychological support, safe spaces for children, and assistance with rebuilding homes that have been destroyed,” Khairy voiced his message to the international and national support networks who work to assist victims of terrorism.

This story, which represents the third 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 conducted 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, who have been 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: Khairy El-Jabouri