She was bought and sold seven times in just three months. Years later, she stood before the United Nations and made the world face what had happened to her. At 25, she became a Nobel Peace Prize winner. August 3, 2014. Kocho, Iraq. Nadia Murad was 21 when ISIS surrounded her Yazidi village. What happened next was genocide. Men and boys were taken away and executed. Six of Nadia’s brothers were killed. Her mother was murdered and buried in a mass grave. Nadia was taken to Mosul. To her captors, she was no longer a person. She was property. She was bought, sold, and traded seven times in just 90 days. She was beaten, burned, and repeatedly sexually assaulted. At one point, Nadia tried to escape. She was caught. The punishment was horrific. Six men raped her until she lost consciousness. She was beaten so badly that she could barely walk. Her captors wanted to break her spirit. They didn’t. In November 2014, Nadia noticed an unlocked door. She ran. A local Muslim family took an enormous risk by hiding her and helping her get out of ISIS-controlled territory. Eventually, she reached a refugee camp. Then she made it to Germany. For the first time in months, she was free. She could have chosen to disappear and build a quiet life somewhere far from the attention. Instead, she decided to speak. In December 2015, Nadia stood before the United Nations Security Council. She was 22 years old. She spoke about girls being sold like cattle, mothers being murdered, and an entire culture being deliberately destroyed. The world listened. In 2016, the United Nations formally recognized the genocide against the Yazidi people. But Nadia wasn’t finished. She turned what had happened to her into a fight for others. In 2018, she founded Nadia’s Initiative, working to rebuild villages, schools, and clinics while helping survivors pursue justice. That same year, at just 25, Nadia became the first Iraqi woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. The world celebrated her. But Nadia’s attention remained on the people who were still missing and those who were still being held captive. For her, that was the prize that truly mattered. Their freedom. She continues to speak for the thousands who were killed and for those whose fate remains unknown. Every time she tells her story, she has to carry the pain all over again. But she knows what silence can cost. Nadia turned suffering into purpose. Trauma into testimony. Survival into a demand for justice. ISIS tried to strip her of her identity and reduce her to property. History remembers her by her name. Nadia Murad. Not simply because she escaped. But because she survived, stood before the world, and refused to let silence have the final word.

Karina Pritika was a young 23 years old woman with a huge heart and big dreams. Born in Portugal and brought to Israel as a child, Karina excelled in rhythmic gymnastics and represented her country in competitions. She served as a Border Crossing soldier and was known for her energy, kindness, and light. On October 7, she called her mother to reassure her. Moments later, she and her friend Maya were caught in an ambush at the Route 232 junction after fleeing the Nova music festival. In the horrific footage that later emerged, Karina and her friend can be seen pleading for their lives. They were executed in cold blood. May we never forget!