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[This talk contains mature content.]

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When I was 14,

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my parents intended to marry me off[br]to a man of their choosing.

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I refused.

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That choice to defy my family

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shaped everything in my life

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and set me on the path[br]to become who I am today.

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But it was very painful at times,[br]and continues to be so.

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My parents were raised in traditional,[br]uneducated Moroccan families

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where a girl's main value[br]is measured by her virginity.

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They emigrated to Belgium,

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and I was born, raised and educated there.

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I did not accept their view of the world.

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When I said no to them,

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I paid for it dearly in terms of[br]physical and emotional abuse,

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but eventually I escaped from their home

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and became a federal police detective

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who could help protect[br]the rights of others.

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My specialty was investigating[br]cases in counterterrorism,

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child abduction and homicide.

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I loved that work,

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and it was extremely fulfilling.

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With my Muslim background,[br]Arabic language skills,

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and an interest[br]in working internationally,

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I decided to seek new challenges.

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After decades of being a police officer,

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I was recruited to become an investigator[br]of sexual and gender-based violence

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as a member of the Justice Rapid Response[br]and UN Women roster.

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Justice Rapid Response is an organization

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for criminal investigations[br]of mass atrocities.

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They run on both public[br]and private funding

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and provide evidence and reports[br]to more than 100 participating countries.

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Many countries in conflict[br]are often unable to provide a just process

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to those who have been[br]victims of mass violence.

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To respond to that,

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Justice Rapid Response was created[br]in partnership with UN Women.

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Together,

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Justice Rapid Response and UN Women[br]recruited, trained and certified

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more than 250 professionals

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with a specific expertise[br]in sexual and gender-based violence,

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like me.

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Our investigations are carried out[br]under international law

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and our findings eventually[br]become evidence

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to prosecute war criminals.

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This mechanism provides hope to victims

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that justice and accountability[br]may someday be found

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in the wake of war and conflict.

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Let me tell you about the most[br]challenging work I have ever done.

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This was in Iraq.

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Since the rise of the Islamic State[br]of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS,

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this group has systematically[br]attacked and tortured

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many religious minorities and ethnicities,

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such as the Christians,

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the Shi'a Turkmen, Shi'a Muslims,[br]Shi'a Shabaks, and the Yazidis.

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The persecution of the Yazidis[br]has been especially horrific.

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On the 3rd and 15th of August 2014,

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ISIS attacked approximately[br]20 villages and towns

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in Sinjar, Iraq.

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They executed all the males[br]over the age of 14,

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including the elderly and disabled.

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They divided up the women and girls,

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raped them,

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and sold them into sexual[br]and domestic slavery.

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One month later,

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a UN Human Rights Council resolution[br]led to the fact-finding mission on Iraq

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to investigate and document[br]alleged violations and abuses

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committed by ISIS and associated groups.

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I was sent to investigate the atrocities[br]committed against the Yazidis,

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with a focus on sexual[br]and gender-based crimes.

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The Yazidis are a Kurdish-speaking[br]ethno-religious community

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based in northern Iraq.

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Their belief system incorporates[br]aspects of Judaism, Christianity,

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Islam, and Zoroastrianism.

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For hundreds of years,

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Muslims and Christians[br]who do not understand their beliefs

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have condemned the Yazidis[br]as devil-worshippers.

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ISIS thought of them in this way[br]and vowed to destroy them.

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OK, let's do an experimental thought here.

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I want you to think about[br]your worst sexual experience

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and recall it in detail.

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Now turn to the person to your right

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and describe that experience.

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(Laughter)

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I know it's difficult, eh?

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(Laughter)

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But of course I wouldn't[br]expect you to do that.

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You would all be uncomfortable[br]and embarrassed.

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And so imagine an 11-year old girl[br]in the Middle East

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who was not educated about sexuality,

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who was taken from her comfort zone,

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her family,

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who witnessed the execution[br]of her father and brothers,

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having to describe in detail[br]the rape that she faced in a culture

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where talking about sexuality is taboo.

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Her only way of recovering her honor

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is to hide the crime,

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believe she was married against her will,

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or deny the events out of shame[br]and fear of being rejected.