Kurdistan Archives

Iraqi-Kurdish war could be deadly for Christians, warns U.S. adviser

Oct 11, 2017

The Ninevah Plains, traditionally home to a large Christian community, is now “ground zero for the disputed territories between the Kurdish regional government and Baghdad.” Five Catholic and Orthodox bishops issued a joint statement appealing to the international community to protect the Christians of the area.

Pope asks Iraqi bishops to persist helping Christians return post-ISIS

Oct 5, 2017

Speaking to Catholic bishops and clergy from Iraq, Pope Francis encouraged them not to give in to discouragement facing the challenges of helping Christians return after the devastation of ISIS occupation, and also delivered a strong plug for Iraqi national unity after a Sept. 25 independence referendum in which 93 percent of Kurds voted to split with Baghdad.

Iraqi nun: We pray for ISIS militants, it helps us forgive
- Oct 3, 2017
During the ISIS occupation of the Nineveh Plains, some 100 places of worship were destroyed, mostly Christian churches. Now, thanks to the support of the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need, about 1,000 Christian families have returned to their homes. Among those seeking to go home are a group of nuns forced to flee the area they had called home for over a century.

By Alvaro de Juana
In Middle East, waiting for ‘right time’ to help Christians a fool’s errand
- Oct 1, 2017
A recent independence vote in Kurdistan has created the threat of new conflict in northern Iraq, and raised questions about whether this is the right time to be trying to rebuild the Christian presence in the Nineveh Plains. Ask Middle East Christians that question, however, and they’ll reply, ‘When exactly would the right time be?’

By John L. Allen Jr.
Kurdish vote won’t slow push to help Nineveh Christians, organizers say
- Sep 30, 2017
Despite a Sept. 25th independence referendum in which 93 percent of Kurds voted to break with Iraq, leading to border closings, threats of economic reprisals, and fears of military conflict, organizers of a push to rebuild Christian villages and towns in the Nineveh Plains, which straddle Iraqi and Kurdish territory, say that for now, they’re moving full steam ahead.

By John L. Allen Jr.