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Reportage

Christian Werner

Photographer

Christian Werner

The Yezidi religion

The Yezidi religion is one of the oldest. Since its founding years, its followers have suffered from 74 genocides. The latest and most systematic attempts are by the IS terrorist militia. The Yazidis are more persecuted than other religious communities because they are regarded as devil worshipers. This is because they believe in Tausi Melek, a fallen angel in the form of a peacock. Since the invasion of the IS terrorist militia in Iraq, hundreds of thousands Yazidis were uprooted and are on the run. Thousands of men and boys were shot and beheaded, women abducted and sold at auction as sex slaves. In adverse circumstances, they have erected makeshift shelters, where they found just enough room. Only a few have made it into the camps set up by NGOs. Most live in the reinforced concrete skeletons of unfinished houses, improvised in tents made of tarpaulins and branches or on the road. They had no chance to prepare for the flight, nor to pack the essentials. Winter has come to Kurdistan and saps the forces of refugees who have no winter clothes or blankets to protect themselves against it. Before the beginning of the year, 10,000 Yazidis were encircled in the Sinjar Mountains of the IS militia. For over 4 months, they fought with little food, little ammunition and weapons to survive until the Kurdish Peshmerga free fought a land corridor. With the story, I wish to draw attention to the situation of the Yazidis, who are the main victims of this conflict. Here I want to show a broad spectrum. The current life situation, the despair of the encircled, the struggle for survival, the war with all its horrors, the religion, the destruction of religion, individual fates and their background.

Christian Werner

Christian Werner is a freelance multimedia/photojournalist based in Boitzum, Germany. Chris, born in 1987, studied from 2009 to 2014 photojournalism and documentary photography at the University of Hanover. He works as a freelance photojournalist and published his photos and stories, among others, in Der Spiegel, Die Zeit, TIME Magazine, The Washington Post and many more. From 2012 -2016 Christian Werner was represented by the German reportage agency laif. In late 2016 Chris is represented by Zeitenspiegel. His photographic focus is the processing of social injustice, conflicts and geopolitical issues. His work has been awarded several times and frequently exhibited internationally. In 2015 Chris participated at the World Press Joop Swart Mastercalss in Amsterdam. 2016 Chris has been chosen in the 30 under 30 Europe Forbes List in the Media category. In late summer 2016 he begins working with MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station).
Chris worked in various countries in Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe and South America.