Yezidi activist Mirza Dinnayi arrived in Armenia and intends to visit  Artsakh

ArmInfo.The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative is happy to announce that Yazidi activist  Mirza Dinnayi, 2019 Aurora Prize Laureate and Co-Founder and Director  of Luftbrucke Irak (Air Bridge Iraq), has arrived in Yerevan.  Mr.  Dinnayi plans to attend several events before travelling to Artsakh  and will remain in Armenia until December 11, 2020.

According to the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, Mirza Dinnayi was  named the 2019 Aurora Laureate on October 19, 2019, at the ceremony  in Yerevan that was held during the Aurora Forum. Driven by his  passion to save lives, this Yazidi activist has found a way to  overcome numerous bureaucratic and logistic obstacles to help the  most vulnerable members of the Yazidi community during numerous  conflicts in Syria and Iraq. In the course of his visit to Armenia,  Mr.  Dinnayi will visit the Erebuni Medical Centre and Heratsi  Hospital Complex to pay respect to those wounded during the war  against Nagorno-Љarabakh.

On December 8, after meeting with the representatives of the local  Yazidi community, Mirza Dinnayi will attend a special ceremony  dedicated to the cancellation of a new international postage stamp  created by the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative in cooperation with  HayPost. The annual tradition of issuing a fundraising stamp  featuring the Aurora Prize Laureates was established in 2017 with the  release of the first stamp depicting 2016 Aurora Prize Laureate  Marguerite Barankitse.  On December 9, Mirza Dinnayi will go to  Artsakh to meet with local officials and people affected by the war.  This visit is a part of Aurora's international program of inviting  world humanitarian leaders to Artsakh.

"This year has proven to be exceptionally hard for all of us, and  it's now more important than ever that Aurora remains a shining  beacon of hope for everyone in need," said Mirza Dinnayi. "I'm  delighted with this long-anticipated opportunity to return to Armenia  and personally express my solidarity and support to the Aurora  Humanitarian Initiative and everything it stands for. It's  heartbreaking to see what Armenians, this courageous and ancient  people, had to go through and are still going through. Our nations  have so much in common, and it brings me exceptional joy to be here." 

Drawing on his vast experience of dealing with the aftermath of armed  conflicts, Mirza Dinnayi will have a chance to take a closer look at  some of the20 projects in Artsakh supported by Aurora and talk to  their direct beneficiaries. Following the ceasefire established on  November 10 between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the Aurora Humanitarian  Initiative has stepped up to bring the people of Artsakh immediate  humanitarian relief. In addition to launching the  #AraratChallengeforArtsakh fundraising campaign, the Initiative has  also called on its international community to share knowledge and  provide support to ensure effective solutions on the ground in  Armenia.