Thousands Of Christians Flee Mosul

Families Leave Iraq's 3rd Largest City To Escape What Local Official Calls "A Killing Campaign"

(AP)  Hundreds of terrified Christian families have fled Mosul to escape extremist attacks that have increased despite months of U.S. and Iraqi military operations to secure the northern Iraqi city, political and religious officials said Saturday.

Some 3,000 Christians have fled the city over the past week alone in a "major displacement," said Duraid Mohammed Kashmoula, the governor of northern Iraq's Ninevah province. He said most have left for churches, monasteries and the homes of relatives in nearby Christian villages and towns.

"The Christians were subjected to abduction attempts and paid ransom, but now they are subjected to a killing campaign," Kashmoula said, adding he believed "al Qaeda" elements were to blame and called for a renewed drive to root them out.

Political and religious leaders interviewed said the change in tactics may reflect a desire on the part of extremists to forcibly evict all Christians from Iraq's third largest city.

Earlier this week, Chaldean Archbishop Louis Sako said he was worried about what he termed a "campaign of killings and deportations against the Christian citizens in Mosul."

Mosul police have reported finding the bullet-riddled bodies of seven Christians in separate attacks so far this month, the latest a day laborer found on Wednesday. On Saturday, militants blew up three abandoned Christian homes in eastern Mosul, police said.

Father Bolis Jacob of Mosul's Mar Afram Church said he was at a loss to understand the violence. "We respect the Islamic religion and the Muslim clerics," he said. "We don't know under what religion's pretexts these terrorists work."

The violence in Mosul occurs despite U.S.-Iraqi operations launched over the summer aimed at routing al Qaeda in Iraq and other insurgents from remaining strongholds north of the capital.

The killings come as Christian leaders are lobbying parliament to pass a law setting aside a number of seats for minorities, such as Christians, in upcoming provincial elections, fearing they could be further marginalized in the predominantly Muslim country.

Iraq's Christian community has been estimated at 3 percent of Iraq's 26 million people, or about 800,000, and has a significant presence in the northern Ninevah province.

In Mosul, where Christians have lived for some 1,800 years, a number of centuries-old churches still stand.

Joseph Jacob, a professor at Mosul University, said there were nearly 20,000 Christians in the city before the 2003 U.S. invasion. But over half have since left for neighboring towns, or new countries, he said.

Islamic extremists have frequently targeted Christians since the invasion, forcing tens of thousands to flee Iraq. Attacks had tapered off amid a drastic decline in overall violence nationwide, but that appears to be changing with the deaths this month.

On Saturday, Bashir Azoz, a 45-year-old carpenter, said he was forced to flee his home in the city's eastern Noor area after gunmen warned a neighbor the day before to leave or face death.

"Where is the government and its security forces as these crimes take place every day?" asked Azoz, who is now staying with his wife and three children in a monastery in the Christian-majority town of Qarqoush, east of Mosul.

Separately on Saturday, a U.S. soldier died when a bomb exploded near his vehicle outside Amarah, southeast of Baghdad. The U.S. military said it was withholding soldier's name until it notified next of kin.

[libluv2cnsor]

Posted by seis-6-seis at 10:10 PM : Oct 13, 2008
+ report abuse


*********

So what would an athiest do when a christian moves next door?

chase them down and beat them like the christians??

i really starting to doubt of athiesm is any better..

[libluv2cnsor]

Maybe they are over there converting in the wrong neighborhoods?
you cant fly the wrong colors in the wrong hood..


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Posted by seis-6-seis at 10:10 PM : Oct 13, 2008
+ report abuse


*********these 3000 christians are not european white but more middle eastern..they are not there to convert but there to live an existance amongst the muslim..

they are getting prosecuted for thier religion..wonder what you would do if you run a country...UP TO KILL A FEW YOUR DONT LIKE?

[gaye5]

StopSocialis is right, they are told to be nice until their numbers have grown enough to become a force, just as mohammad did.. As I said, the first part of the Quran was peace, love, tolerance, etc until their numbers had grown enough to become a force then they became a force just as they are told to do today..
They are not allowed to be our friends unless it is for the cause of Allah, because they see us as evil they hate our guts and we are to be slaughtered. any nice Muslims obviously dont know their holy books and obviously they dont go to pray often, other wise they would know that we are the hated infidels and are to be killed until all the world is for allah.

[gaye5]

justsurfing, what on earth are you talking about, no where did I say that we were not allowed to criticises anyone, I was just pointing out what Muslims say.. we are not allowed to criticise Islam as they see it as us being against them there for must be killed...

[justsurfing-2009]

I have a concern that Obama isn''t being completely truthful in his presentation of himself to the American voters. I believe I can trust knowing his associations and background and values and ideologies, etc. more than I can trust the promises and speeches he makes as he campaigns to get people''s votes.

[justsurfing-2009]

This is one thing that concerns me. Well, a couple. Obama has not been clear about his religion. I think he should clearly disclose it. He''s running for President at a time when our greatest threats are from Islamic terrorists. Yet, he has a Jesus that is created for Malcolm X and this religion hates Jews and white people and considers them an inferior race.

Louis Farrakhan states that "Judaism is a gutter religion" and "Hitler was a very great man". Reverend Wright and Obama''s church gave Louis Farrakhan a "Lifetime Achievement Award".

This religious view does "weigh in" on a person''s view of foreign relations... and how they may deal with Islamic nations as President of hte US. It''s pertinent. We have a right to know as Americans if a candidates religious views may "tilt" how they view Israel as well as Islamic states.

Obama has stated he doesn''t agree with some things stated by Reverend Wright, has left the church, yet was there for 20 years, and wrote that Wright was his "spiritual father" as well as has adopted the Value System of this religion.

His choices concern me. In 2006, Obama travelled to Kenya and appeared in Campaigns with Raila Odinga - who is a Muslim and a Socialist who was running for President. Odinga agreed with Muslims that he would stop the war on terrorists and institute Islamic law - thereby making Kenya a radical Islamic nation. And Obama appeared with Odinga as Odinga campaigned.

[jerr11]

Another MISSION ACCOMPLISHED moment for the Liar-in-Chief!

He removed a secular dictator in Saddam and replaced him with the Iranian mullahs running the country!

So the Christians are being evicted from Mosul!

Thanks to George W Bush!!

At what cost to the country?

$3 trillion spent.

4180 Dead Americans!

The guy who gave us Iraq and Katrina is now giving us the sequel, Nightmare on Wall Street!

Heckuva job, Bush!!

[stopsocialis]

Truthhonor, and contrary to your dictatorship belief that everyone agrees with you when it comes to your belief that the Iraq War is wrong, many of us support our troops in Iraq and their efforts during the war, and believe that taking out the evil Saddam Hussein was indeed the right thing to do.

your liberal hero leaders agreed as well. Joe Biden said Saddam needed to be removed, and so did Billy Bob Clinton and his wife Hillary.

Get your facts straight before you start pointing the fingers like you liberals are so masterful at doing.

Fact is most of our leaders agreed that Saddam needed to be taken out.

But you forget history so quickly, that one has to wonder what planet you''re living on.

[stopsocialis]

As far as I see, the same evangelical president that got us in Iraq still in office. So your blaming liberals, is a claim of idiocy. I mean he is still your president and commander in chief.


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Posted by Truthhonor at 08:08 PM : Oct 12, 2008


Has president Bush appeased Islamic fundamentalism or has he fought against it the past 8 years?

Answer that question would ya? Then ask yourself when was the last time we were attacked by Islamic fundamentalists on American soil, on our homeland.

There are some policies that I disagree with with Pres. Bush(like his wish to create a "2 state solution" in Israel-because Muslims don''t want a 2 state solution, they want Israel wiped out). But one thing he hasn''t done is appease Islamic fundamentalists who want to turn our country into Sharia law.

[mtminds]

justsurfing
what kind of babblecrap is that?