Yazidi women win EU freedom prize

PanARMENIAN.Net - Two Yazidi women who escaped sexual enslavement by so-called Islamic State (IS) in Iraq have won Europe's top human rights award, the Sakharov prize, BBC News reports.

Nadia Murad Basee and Lamiya Aji Bashar were among thousands of Yazidi girls and women abducted by IS militants and forced into sexual slavery in 2014.

But both survived and now campaign for the Yazidi community.

The freedom of thought prize is awarded annually in memory of Andrei Sakharov, a Soviet scientist and dissident.

Guy Verhofstadt, who leads the liberal ALDE group in the European Parliament, described the winners as "inspirational women who have shown incredible bravery and humanity in the face of despicable brutality."

"I am proud that they have been awarded the 2016 Sakharov Prize," he added.

Other finalists included the Crimean Tatars and a former Turkish newspaper editor.

Last year's winner was Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, who is currently serving a ten-year prison sentence which includes 1,000 lashes for "insulting Islam" online.