| Overview : Violence against women is predominant in all forms and occurs in times of peace, during conflict and after conflict. Already affected by years of economic sanctions and armed conflicts, Iraqis, particularly women and girls, have been negatively affected by the deteriorating security situation in recent months. The ongoing conflict in Iraq has forced nearly 2.5 million people to flee their home since January 2014. In the recent wave of displacements, more than half of displaced population (51%) are female. Most of these families ahve settled in camps and in non-camp areas, and are living under severe conditions with their wellbeing and welfare being very week. A special group of women, Yezidis who are abused by ISIL and returned to KRI are the most vulnerable among victims of war. In 2014 the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) absorbed more than 637,000 displaced people [1] from Nineveh province alone, and made significant efforts to provide health, psychological trauma treatment and other services to Yezidi women and girls who have escaped ISIL. However, there is a large gap in providing livelihood opportunities for this special group of Yazidi women having no access to income generating activities. Moreover, IDP women and girls, in general, are particularly vulnerable to security threats and are unable to claim their rights. They are in need of additional support to protect them from sexual and gender based violence committed both within family and outside such as in the case of trafficking and sexual harassment and abuse. UNDP, in partnership with governmental and non-governmental institutions, is supporting the protection mechanisms targeting vulnerable women and girls among IDPs from Sexual Gender Based Violence and Trafficking through operating Legal Aid Centers (LAC) inside main IDPs camps in the three governorates of Kurdistan Region, providing legal and social services, addressing immediate protection needs. | 
