Israel Today

MembersCombatting ISIS With Laughter

A group of medical volunteers from Iraq’s Yazidi minority recently visited Israel to receive “clown” training to help children back home suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following years of persecution by ISIS.

Yossi Aloni

Oct 1, 2018 at 4:03 pm

Much of Iraq’s Yazidi population was brutally massacred after Islamic State jihadists conquered Mount Sinjar in the province of Nineveh.

The program is the brainchild of the Israeli NGO “Dream Doctors,” which describes itself as “a unique non-profit organization that integrates therapeutic medical clowns as an integral part of the healthcare staff.” Also involved was the Israeli organization “Road to Peace,” which brought the Yazidi participants from Iraq to Israel, and Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, where the training took place. The initiative was supported every step of the way by the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

By the end of the course, the participants returned to Iraq with new tools and techniques to help bring a...

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