ISIS on Aug. 19 released a video purporting to show a mass conversion of hundreds of members of the 4,000-year-old Yazidi religion. The "conversion" is clearly forced, undertaken on pain of death. The video was published shortly after ISIS released a video showing one of its members beheading US journalist James Foley, sparking outrage around the world. (IraqiNews.com) More than 90,000 Yazidi refugees who fled Mount Sinjar to the Kurdish-governed Dahouk governorate live in horrific conditions, according to Saleh Dabbakeh, spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Iraq. Thousands are without even rudimentary shelter, seeking refuge form the blazing sun under trees and bridges. He said many of the refugees who made it to Dahouk are now struggling "to get food and water for their families and many have no access to medical care." (Azzaman)

European military support for the Kurds continued to swell, with Germany, Italy and even tiny Albania announcing arms supplies to Peshmerga forces fighting SIS. They join Britain and France in sending arms supplies to the Kurds. (Rudaw) US air-strikes meanwhile continued in the area of the Mosul Dam, targeting ISIS Humvees and other equipment. (Fox News)