The Death of Mir Tahsin Beg and the Future of the Yezidi Community
On January 28, 2019 the religious and secular head of the Yezidis, Emir (Mir) Tahsin Beg died. The article presents some biographical features of the head of the Yezidis, highlights important aspects of the institution of Emir, its role and place in the Yezidi community. Particular attention was paid to the changes that have taken place in the Yezidi society after the attack of ISIS on the Sinjar area in August 2014, which was the main center of Yezidi community. Thousands of Yezidi men were killed, and captured Yezidi women were enslaved. The Kurdish Peshmerga guaranteed security to the Yezidis before terrorist attacks on Yezidi areas, but had fled from the Sinjar. This vividly showed the historical character of the Yezidi-Kurdish relations and led in a part of the Yezidi community to increased anti-Kurdish sentiment. This period coincided with the disease of the Emir who was not able to carry out the vigorous activity necessary in circumstances so tragic for his people. After the death of the Emir, a crisis arose regarding the election of a new head of the Yezidis. Сrisis resolution requires changes in the rules of the institution of Emir and the system of governance in the Yezidi community. In order to overcome the crisis, in the Yezidi diaspora work was initiated on the development of a “constitution”, which provides for the formalization, systematization and standardization of various aspects of religious life. An important aspect of the proposed changes is limiting the rights of the Emir, increasing the role of collective institutions, primarily the Supreme Religious Council, by introducing members of the diaspora and a number of authoritative religious figures of the Yezidis of Iraq. However, the new Emir Hazem was elected contrary to the position of part of the community. This intensified the split among the Yezidis.