Home
News
Archives
Anguish in Mosul: Iraqi Christians displ...

Email:

Anguish in Mosul: Iraqi Christians displaced and murdered

To

Email address:
Separate multiple addresses with a comma (,). Maximum of 10

From

Your name:
Your email address:
Security test:
Please enter the numbers that appear here in the box below.
 refresh captcha
CAPTCHA Image
Security code:

Details provided here will never be used in any other context

Published: Tuesday 02 March 2010

Anguish in Mosul: Iraqi Christians displaced and murdered

Project(s): 20-227

Country: Iraq

Anti-Christian violence in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul has intensified alarmingly in recent months. In February eight Christians were murdered in the space of ten days.

Zia_Toma_web
Iraqi Christian Zia Toma (21)
was gunned down and killed at a bus stop
on his way to university in Mosul

On Sunday 14 Rayan Salem Elias was killed outside his home by armed assailants, and the next day a Christian greengrocer, Fatukhi Munir, was gunned down in his shop in a drive-by shooting. Then on Tuesday 16 two Christian students, Zia Toma (21) and Ramsin Shmael (22), were on their way to the local university when gunmen opened fire on them. Zia was killed and Ramsin wounded. They had already been displaced from their homes in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, by the instability there.

On Wednesday 17 Wissam George (20), another student, went missing on his way to the institute where he was studying to be a teacher. His body was found in the street that afternoon, riddled with bullets. On Friday 19 Sabah Yacob Dahan was found murdered, having been abducted from his shop five days earlier. And on Wednesday 24 Aiechoa Metoka and his two sons, Mukhlos and Basem, were killed in their home by three gunmen. They were the father and brothers of a prominent Christian leader, who was himself kidnapped (and later released) two years ago.

Yet more Christians fleeing Mosul

These attacks are only the latest in a long series of incidents that have spread terror among the Christian population of Mosul. They bring to twelve the number of Christians killed in the city since December, and seven bomb attacks on Christian targets have left many injured and property damaged.

Over 300 families have recently fled from the city into the relative safety of the Christian townships in the Nineveh Plain. Some Christians struggle to escape because they are poor and do not have cars, and many taxi drivers are too afraid to provide transport for them.

Approaching elections

Church leaders are concerned that the anti-Christian hostility is being fuelled by the approach of national elections on 7 March. They believe that the intention of the militants is to drive Christians out of Mosul altogether, and they are dissatisfied with the protection provided by the authorities. “We don’t want elections, we don’t want our rights, we just want to be alive,” said one leader.

“We just want to live in peace in our country”

A senior figure in the Church in Baghdad pleaded for an end to the murder of Christians. “Help us to continue to bear witness to the Gospel as we have done for centuries,” he said. “The Iraqi Christian community must not die. We Christians are innocent victims. We never hurt anybody; we just want to live in peace in our country.”

Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, International Director of Barnabas Aid, added,

“There are few places of safety left in Iraq for our brothers and sisters. Almost all have left Basra and most have left Baghdad. Even in Mosul, where once Christians might have felt secure, they now live in fear of their lives and are fleeing in large numbers. Please will you remember them in your prayers, and please will you give as you are able to help us meet their needs?”

Donate Today

Will you help to relieve the suffering of your Christian brothers and sisters?

If you would like to make a gift for the relief of displaced Christians in Iraq, please send your donation to project reference 20-227 (Iraq General Fund). Please click to donate online using our secure server for 20-227 (Iraq General Fund).

If you prefer to telephone, dial: 0800 587 4006 from within the UK or +44 1672 565031 from outside the UK. Please quote project reference 20-227 (Iraq General Fund).

If you prefer to send a cheque by post: Click this link for the address of our regional office. Please quote project reference20-227 (Iraq General Fund).

Please Pray:
  1. For the families of the Christians recently murdered in Mosul, that the Lord will comfort them and give them His peace.

  2. For those who have fled their homes and are facing an uncertain future, and for those still trying to survive in the city.

  3. That our Christian brothers and sisters in Iraq will be able to live without fear of being targeted and that they will put their hope and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

  4. For peace and stability in Iraq as the country approaches the elections. Pray that the security forces will act to protect the Christian minority.
christian, persecution, charity, church, persecuted, sookhdeo, Islam

Follow Barnabas

or

receive news & appeal emails as they are published

From Twitter

From Twitter_icon

  • Acid attack on pastor highlights growing religious intolerance in Uganda http://t.co/4BRXLXfh 11 hours ago

  • Court ratifies death sentence for three men convicted of 2010 attack on Iraq church that left more than 50 dead http://t.co/ZVI9p68G Fri, Feb 2012 16:33

  • Egyptian Christians are concerned about their future under the new parliament. http://t.co/GwXFiJxM Thu, Feb 2012 16:47

  • “It’s like the Middle Ages” says secular Tunisian columnist amid rising tide of #Islamism http://t.co/rXDihAp8 Thu, Feb 2012 10:03

  • Indian Christians targeted in 140 violent incidents last year http://t.co/uQZISBZI Wed, Feb 2012 12:27

Read more...

Daily prayer

Daily prayer_icon

  • The protest in Cairo (see yesterday’s prayer point) was sparked by the destruction of St George’s Church in Aswan province on 30 September 2011. Muslims, angry about renovation work that was being carried out on the dilapidated building, had previously threatened to demolish the church. A mob descended on St George’s after Friday prayers and demolished the dome, walls and columns before torching the building. Other property owned by Christians was also burnt. This incident was the latest in a long line of violent attacks on Christians in Egypt, which have intensified since the revolution. Pray that the Lord will encourage the congregation that has lost their building and provide them with alternative premises in which to meet and worship Him. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed 21 hours ago

  • At least 25 people were killed and hundreds injured when Christian protestors were brutally assaulted in Egypt on Sunday 9 October. Video footage showed military vehicles charging at Christians who were demonstrating in Cairo against the torching of a church and other injustices. They were also shot at, beaten and dragged through the streets by soldiers, Islamist attackers and plain-clothed thugs. Although Muslims were among the aggressors, some were also reportedly present to defend the Christians from the security forces. Adding insult to injury, generals from the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces blamed Christian protestors for the violence, and denied that troops had fired at protestors and rolled over them in military vehicles. Pray for all those who were bereaved and injured in this attack, and ask that Egyptian Christians will be treated justly as equal citizens. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Sun, Feb 2012 00:00

  • Twenty-two children of Arab Christian workers who minister in a Middle Eastern country are receiving a Christian education thanks to support from Barnabas. State schools in this country are often in extremely poor physical condition, classrooms are overcrowded, and under-qualified staff teach by rote. Islam is heavily promoted, and the memorisation of extensive passages from the Qu’ran is compulsory. Discrimination against non-Muslim children is often open and aggressive. One of the Christian mothers said, “My son is so thankful. He was so frustrated with the national curriculum, but now he feels motivated to learn and enjoys school.” Give praise that these Christian children can receive a Christian education and pray that they may grow up into mature believers. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Sat, Feb 2012 00:00

  • In August 2011 a South Korean pastor died in a suspected poison needle attack after smuggling runaways from North Korea to safety. Christians in North Korea are thought to number at least 400,000, but they are cruelly persecuted: they live in constant danger of imprisonment and torture in the regime’s notoriously brutal labour camps, and even of execution. Those who try to help them escape across the border do so at the risk of their lives. Pray for deliverance for our brothers and sisters in their distress, and that the Lord will protect those Christians in neighbouring countries who reach out to help them. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Fri, Feb 2012 00:00

  • “Believers have passion and joy in their hearts. We give thanks to God, for He has granted us hope and faith, has restored us from weariness, and has enabled us to trust Him alone,” says a recent statement from Shouwang Church in Beijing, China. Continue to pray for our valiant brothers and sisters, who have continued to meet in the open air to worship the Lord despite persistently harsh treatment by the authorities. Many believers have been detained at the venue, on their way there, or even because the police suspect that they intend to go. The church was evicted from its meeting-place in April 2011 by the government, which had previously pressured property owners not to sell or lease premises to them. Pray that the Lord will honour the faithfulness of His people and that they may soon be granted a safe place to worship. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Thu, Feb 2012 00:00

Read more...

Quick navigation

© Barnabas Aid 1997 - 2012 All rights reserved.
Barnabas Aid is a registered trade mark