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Iraq’s Christians ‘do not have much time left,’ says leading cleric Iraq’s Christians ‘do not have much time left,’ says leading cleric
(1 day later)
The Archbishop of Irbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, delivered an impassioned plea to British lawmakers and clergy in London on Tuesday, urging "military action" to save Iraq's endangered religious minorities.The Archbishop of Irbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, delivered an impassioned plea to British lawmakers and clergy in London on Tuesday, urging "military action" to save Iraq's endangered religious minorities.
Archbishop Bashar Warda, of the ancient Catholic Chaldaean Church, said the upheavals caused by the rise of the Islamic State, which has overrun vast tracts of territory in Iraq and Syria, imperiled the very existence of Christians in the Middle East.Archbishop Bashar Warda, of the ancient Catholic Chaldaean Church, said the upheavals caused by the rise of the Islamic State, which has overrun vast tracts of territory in Iraq and Syria, imperiled the very existence of Christians in the Middle East.
"We don't have much time left as Christians in this region," the archbishop told the Westminster gathering, according to the BBC. "As a Catholic I find it hard to say, but I want military action, there is no other way now.""We don't have much time left as Christians in this region," the archbishop told the Westminster gathering, according to the BBC. "As a Catholic I find it hard to say, but I want military action, there is no other way now."
Warda called for the deployment of British and other Western troops to compensate for the inefficacy of Iraqi forces. The likelihood of that actually happening is very slim. The cleric's plea echoes a wider desperation among Iraq's Christians, as well as other religious minorities, including the persecuted Yazidi sect, in the face of the chaos gripping their homeland.Warda called for the deployment of British and other Western troops to compensate for the inefficacy of Iraqi forces. The likelihood of that actually happening is very slim. The cleric's plea echoes a wider desperation among Iraq's Christians, as well as other religious minorities, including the persecuted Yazidi sect, in the face of the chaos gripping their homeland.
"How bad, how evil this situation must be if this is the call of a Catholic archbishop," a British conservative peer remarked after hearing Warda."How bad, how evil this situation must be if this is the call of a Catholic archbishop," a British conservative peer remarked after hearing Warda.
Warda is hardly the only Iraqi Christian voice sounding these dire warnings. As WorldViews reported earlier, Chaldaean Catholic Patriarch Louis Sako lamented last year how the past decade since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 has been a disaster for Iraq's religious minorities. The instability and sectarian violence that followed the ousting of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein has led to a refugee crisis and paved the way for the Islamic State's emergence. The jihadists have terrorized Christian and other minority communities, massacred innocents, destroyed heritage sites and enslaved women and girls.Warda is hardly the only Iraqi Christian voice sounding these dire warnings. As WorldViews reported earlier, Chaldaean Catholic Patriarch Louis Sako lamented last year how the past decade since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 has been a disaster for Iraq's religious minorities. The instability and sectarian violence that followed the ousting of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein has led to a refugee crisis and paved the way for the Islamic State's emergence. The jihadists have terrorized Christian and other minority communities, massacred innocents, destroyed heritage sites and enslaved women and girls.
"There were about 1 million Christians in Iraq and more than half of them have been displaced. Only 400,000 are left while displacement is still rising," Sako said last year. He likened the ravages of the Islamic State to those of the merciless Mongol hordes who sacked Baghdad in the 13th century."There were about 1 million Christians in Iraq and more than half of them have been displaced. Only 400,000 are left while displacement is still rising," Sako said last year. He likened the ravages of the Islamic State to those of the merciless Mongol hordes who sacked Baghdad in the 13th century.
There's a deep history to Christian communities in this part of the world, one that belies the sense of civilizational struggle projected both by jihadist extremists and hawkish conservatives in the West.There's a deep history to Christian communities in this part of the world, one that belies the sense of civilizational struggle projected both by jihadist extremists and hawkish conservatives in the West.
"The current threat to all Christian communities in Western Asia," writes Rowan Williams, the former archbishop of Canterbury "is a threat that seeks to deny something fundamental to the history of human civilization, that people of very different convictions can still build a culture together." "The current threat to all Christian communities in Western Asia," writes Rowan Williams, the former archbishop of Canterbury, "is a threat that seeks to deny something fundamental to the history of human civilization, that people of very different convictions can still build a culture together."