DOHUK, Kurdistan Region – These are busy times for Murad Berces, a Yezidi mediator who has been in the business of freeing fellow Yezidi women held captive by the Islamic State (ISIS) group.

With two cellphones ringing off the hook as he talks, he routinely picks them and calmly inspects the numbers displayed.

“Less than a month after ISIS took Shingal, I had a call from fellow Yezidis who were asking for my help,” said Murad, explaining how he became involved in brokering deals to bring home captive Yezidis.

“Of course, I offered my help unreservedly,” said Murad, who is in his thirties.

“After that call I helped rescue three girls,” he said, explaining that was sufficient for his name to rapidly circulate among desperate Yezidis who wanted nothing more than reunion with their loved ones.

And among the many heartbreaking stories of ISIS brutality that he has heard from victims, he also has his own.

“In my own extended family,” he recounted, “our two sisters-in-law -- two sisters along with four of our nieces -- disappeared without a trace after the assault.”

There are no reliable data about exactly how many women were abducted by the militants in August 2014, when ISIS attacked the Yezidi town of Shingal.

But according to the office of Yezdi affairs, which was set up by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to locate kidnapped Yezidis, 2,000 men, women and children of Yezidi descent were rescued last year, often in return for ransoms.

The office says at least 1,500 more captives are still being held by the militants, the majority in Syria.

“All of those I have rescued were freed for ransoms paid by the KRG,” Murad said. And as in any other business, he said, the ransom prices fluctuate from a few hundred to thousands of dollars.

“There have been women who we managed to bring home by paying $500, and then there were cases where we paid $10,000,” Murad said, reluctantly sharing information about the ransoms paid.

His cellphones are full of pictures -- probably 2,000 images -- of women and children who are still in captivity.
He said he knew the whereabouts of some of the prisoners, but most of the others were missing without a trace.

“I have perhaps helped bring home some 300 women so far,” Murad explained. “And I have promised myself to continue my work as long as even a single Yezidi remains in ISIS imprisonment,” he added.

Murad said that many people -- Arabs and Kurds -- had been helping him locate the missing Yezidis. He recounted there were Arab families who put their lives in danger by mediating and bringing back the captives.

“I have seen local Arabs who have been extremely compassionate and helped us in every way,” he said.

Of all the stories Murad has heard over the past year from freed survivors, one in particular has had more of an impact: “I know I will never forget her voice when she first called me,” he said, referring to a 12-year-old girl who had called him while in ISIS confinement.

“She was crying and screaming and asking me to help,” he recounted. “She had been there for four months and had been severely abused.”

Last month, Murad finally was able to pay the ransom and bring the girl to her family.

“I feel so relieved when I think of her now among her family,” he said. “I will probably never forget that story.”

Rudaw