Where is this happening?
The Yazidis are under attack in the ISIS-controlled parts of Kurdistan, a region in northwestern Iraq.
The following map shows key locations in the Yazidis' flight from ISIS.
Sunni militants from the Islamic State (ISIS) have driven a little-known, mysterious religious group called the Yazidi into the mountains of northwestern Iraq.
Their persecution of the Yazidi has been part of a larger, ongoing effort to drive all non-Sunni Muslims out of ISIS-held territory, but the plight of the Yazidi has drawn international attention. A large number of Yazidis are now stranded and starving on a mountainside in Iraq, surrounded by ISIS forces and on the verge of death.
Here's what we know about them.
Who are they?
The Yazidi are a Kurdish ethno-religious group who follow an ancient religion related to Zoroastrianism. Population estimates vary widely, but the vast majority of Yazidis (estimated to be about half a million people) live in the northern Iraqi province of Nineveh, in the Kurdish territory near Iraq's borders with Syria and Turkey. There are fewer than 1 million Yazidis worldwide. The Yazidi share the same language as the more populous Kurds, but they are a distinct minority in the region.
What are their beliefs?
While the Yazidi religion has ties to Zoroastrianism, it also has roots in other faiths, including Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism. Yazidis believe in a creator god who made seven angels to protect the world. The chief among those angels rebelled against the creator and was imprisoned in a hellish world for his crimes. Eventually, the fallen angel repented his sins and returned to the creator's good graces as protector of the world.
This "fallen angel" narrative has made the Yazidi targets of religious persecution, as it bears many similarities to the story of the fallen (and unredeemed) angel Satan in Christian and Islamic faiths. One of the religion's lesser-used names for their chief angel is "Shaytan," the word for Satan in the Koran. Yazidis have been accused of devil worship as a result.
Yazidis do not accept new converts and only marry within their religion. They value the Bible and the Koran, but much of their religion is steeped in oral tradition.
Why are they trapped in the mountains?
Sunni religious extremists have seized large portions of Iraqi territory and offered all non-Muslims in that area a choice: convert to Islam, pay a religious fine, run away, or die.
Many Yazidis fleeing this religious persecution have left the ISIS-controlled city of Mosul and gone west to Sinjar, a spiritually significant town on Sinjar Mountain. ISIS militants attacked the town over the weekend and drove tens of thousands of Yazidis into the unforgiving mountain wilderness. The Yazidi have been hiding from ISIS for days, without food or water, while ISIS troops surround them and attempt to starve them to death.
Other Yazidis have taken refuge in villages safe from ISIS control.
It's not the first time Yazidis have been persecuted. Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein persecuted Yazidis and Kurds during his reign.
What is the rest of the world doing?
U.S. relief forces air-dropped supplies to the stranded Yazidis on Friday, and dropped bombs on ISIS forces attacking the Kurdish city of Irbil. Some Yazidis have reportedly taken refuge in Irbil.
Minister of Foreign Affairs John Baird said Friday that Canada supports the U.S. operation in Iraq.
"Canada continues to condemn the repugnant killing of innocent civilians, including women and children, from Christian, Yazidi, and other religious and minority communities," Baird said in a statement issued Friday. "Canada supports all efforts, including United States supply drops and airstrikes, to protect civilians from ISIS terrorists."
Baird also voiced his support for the Iraqi government, but urged the country's leaders to put aside religious differences and resolve the ISIS threat.
He said Canada has not been asked to provide military assistance in the conflict. "Canadian officials, including Canada's ambassador to Iraq, who is based in Jordan, will be working to determine how best to support the Iraqi people with the current security and humanitarian challenges."
With files from BBC News, the Associated Press, Al-Jazeera, Institute for the Study of War and The Guardian.
