Yazidi boy held captive by IS gets brief meeting with prime minister in Winnipeg

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This article was published 01/02/2018 (2864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Yazidi boy reunited with his mother in Winnipeg after enduring years as an Islamic State prisoner got his wish for a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Wednesday.

Well, sort of.

Before Trudeau took the stage at the University of Manitoba’s Athletic Centre for the fifth stop on his coast-to-coast town hall tour, he set aside five minutes to meet Emad Mishko Tamo in a back room at the venue.

That gave the 13-year-old enough time to snap a few pictures with the prime minister and present him a letter outlining ongoing IS persecution of Yazidi people.

“Emad had a dream to meet the prime minister and last night we were able to make that happen,” said Hadji Hesso, director of the Yazidi Association of Manitoba and spokesman for Emad’s family.

“Unfortunately, it was not the meeting we were hoping for. We did not explore, or talk about, the things we want to talk about. We were unable to really sit down and talk, but Emad did give him a message about the Yazidi people in general.”

Emad made international headlines last year when a photo of the then 12-year-old circulated on social media following his liberation from the IS by Iraqi soldiers.

In the photo, a frail-looking Emad sits in the passenger seat of a vehicle, a water bottle clasped in his hands, his hair dishevelled and blood and cuts visible on his face. He had suffered a gunshot wound to his arm and had shrapnel wounds in his stomach.

The events that led Emad to meet with the prime minister began in 2014, when the IS mounted an assault into the Sinjar mountain range of northern Iraq.

Tens of thousands of Yazidis — considered heretics by the IS — were displaced from their homes. Thousands of men, women and children were abducted and killed.

Emad, then nine years old, was taken captive with his family. Emad’s mother and four of her children were separated from Emad, another son and her husband. Eventually, Emad’s mother and four of his siblings were liberated, relocating to Winnipeg as refugees in January 2016.

It wasn’t until the photo of Emad went viral in July of last year that his mother realized her son was still alive. The whereabouts of Emad’s brother and father remain unknown.

Since being reunited with his mother and siblings last August, Emad has expressed a desire to use his notoriety to support and advocate for Yazidi children who remain in IS captivity. It is estimated at least 900 Yazidi youth remain imprisoned.

That’s what led the Yazidi Association of Manitoba to post a video to social media in January of Emad, now 13, asking Trudeau for a meeting.

“There’s a thousand other kids like me who are still held captive. Hon. Justin Trudeau, will you meet me?” reads signs held up by Emad in the video.

It wasn’t until Wednesday night Emad got that meeting, even if it wasn’t exactly what he’d hoped for.

Hesso, who’s served as a spokesman for Emad since his arrival in Winnipeg, said they’ll continue to followup with the prime minister and government officials, looking to push for a full sit-down meeting.

“We want to follow up. Hopefully we’ll get a meeting, one taken in Ottawa. We’re not sure yet. Emad was excited to meet him, but it was kind of a rushed meeting. We definitely need more time to raise other concerns and bring awareness to the matters and issues facing the Yazidi people,” Hesso said.

“There are a lot of women and girls still held captive. Almost 900 kids like Emad still unaccounted for. The whole infrastructure of the Yazidi region, it’s absolutely devastated. People can’t go back.”

A spokeswoman for the prime minister said Trudeau appreciated the chance to meet with Emad Wednesday, but didn’t say whether another meeting would be set at some point.

Since his arrival in Winnipeg, Emad has recovered from his injuries and has been adjusting to life in Canada.

Given all he’s been through, that adjustment has been a slow process for the 13-year-old, said Hesso, before adding Emad’s been focused on school and doing his best to learn how to be a kid once again.

ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @rk_thorpe

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