The Êzîdxan Protection Force (HPÊ) (, ), is a

Yazidi Yazidis, also spelled Yezidis (; ), are a Kurdish-speaking endogamous religious group indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Iran. The majority of Yazidis remaining in ...

military force founded by Haydar Shesho in the summer of 2014 in response to the

Sinjar massacre The Sinjar massacre () marked the beginning of the genocide of Yazidis by ISIL, the killing and abduction of thousands of Yazidis, Yazidi men, women and children. It took place in August 2014 in Sinjar city and Sinjar District in Iraq's Nineveh ...

. It was bigger than the other main Yazidi militia who took part in the liberation of

Sinjar Sinjar (; , ) is a town in the Sinjar District of the Nineveh Governorate in northern Iraq. It is located about five kilometers south of the Sinjar Mountains. Its population in 2013 was estimated at 88,023, and is predominantly Yazidi. History ...

from the

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

, the

Sinjar Resistance Units The Sinjar Resistance Units (; ''YBŞ'') is a Yazidi militia formed in Sinjar, northern Iraq. It was formed in 2007 to protect Yazidis in the wake of the Qahtaniyah bombings. It is the second largest Yazidi militia, after the pro- KRG Êzîdx ...

, which is aligned with the PKK-backed

Kurdistan Communities Union The Kurdistan Communities Union (, KCK) is a Kurdish political organization committed to implementing Abdullah Öcalan's ideology of democratic confederalism. The KCK also serves as an umbrella group for several confederalist political parties o ...

. The militia was known as the Protection Force of Sinjar or HPŞ (), also translated as Sinjar Defense Units or Sinjar Protection Force, until November 2015, when it changed its name to ''Hêza Parastina Êzîdxanê'' or HPÊ. Haydar Shesho was arrested on 5 April 2015 by the

Kurdistan Democratic Party The Kurdistan Democratic Party (), usually abbreviated as KDP or PDK, is the ruling Political party, party in Iraqi Kurdistan and the senior partner in the Kurdistan Regional Government. It was founded in 1946 in Mahabad in Iranian Kurdistan. ...

Kurdistan Regional Government The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is the official executive body of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq. The cabinet is selected by the majority party or list who also select the prime minister of the Iraqi Kurdish poli ...

forces for "creating an illegitimate new militia." He was released a week later after it was negotiated that he would register with the KRG's Ministry of Peshmerga. He has been quoted as saying "We fight only for Yazidis, not for any party." In October 2015, the HPŞ participated in the foundation of the Sinjar Alliance as an all-Yazidi joint commando umbrella structure with the Sinjar Resistance Units, the

Êzîdxan Women's Units The Êzîdxan Women's Units ( or YJÊ) is a Yazidi all-women militia formed in Iraq in 2015 to protect the Yazidi community in the wake of attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and other Islamist groups that view Yazidis as pagan ...

, and other, independent Yazidi units recruited to the united Yazidi front. Under the joint command of the newly founded Sinjar Alliance, the Êzîdxan Protection Force took part in the successful November 2015 Sinjar offensive. The HPÊ joined the

Peshmerga The Peshmerga () are the internal security forces of Kurdistan Region. According to the Constitution of Iraq, regional governments are responsible for "the establishment and organization of the internal security forces for the region such as p ...

of the

in 2017. This, despite the warnings of Haydar Shesho in the immediate aftermath of the liberation of

over a "war of flags". Massoud Barzani, leader of the

KDP KDP may refer to: Businesses *Kindle Direct Publishing, an e-publisher that bans without reason *Keurig Dr Pepper, a beverage conglomerate Political parties * Karpatendeutsche Partei (KdP; Carpathian Germany Party), Czechoslovakia * Katipunan ...

and the most powerful figure in

Iraqi Kurdistan Iraqi Kurdistan or Southern Kurdistan () refers to the Kurds, Kurdish-populated part of northern Iraq. It is considered one of the four parts of Greater Kurdistan in West Asia, which also includes parts of southeastern Turkey (Northern Kurdist ...

, claimed on television that only KRG

were involved in the Sinjar offensives. ezidiPress quoted from the office of Haydar Shesho: "the next battle... might be the most difficult: the abolition of the one-party dictatorship." In June 2017, the Êzîdxan Protection Force committed the Qabusiye massacre in northern Iraq, executing 52 members of the Al-Bu Metewut tribe over suspected ties to ISIS. The killings were condemned by the Iraqi government and human rights groups.

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ezidxan Protection Force Paramilitary forces of Iraq Anti-ISIL factions in Iraq Sinjar Alliance Religious paramilitary organizations 2014 establishments in Iraq Military units and formations established in 2014 Yazidi organizations in Iraq

See also

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References