IRAQ. Mount Sinjar. August 12, 2014. Children grasp each other as they wait for an Iraqi air force rescue helicopter to land, hoping to be able to get a spot on the aircraft. The children, Yazidis from the city of Sinjar, had fled religious persecution at the hands of Islamist extremists who had taken over their hometown. In the high grounds of Mount Sinjar, they found safety from ISIS but risked dying of hunger and thirst. They eventually did manage to board the rescue helicopter, but it crashed into the side of the mountain shortly after takeoff. They all survived the crash, but many were severely wounded. They were later rescued by a second helicopter which airlifted them to Dohuk, Iraqi Kurdistan.