The Plains of Nineveh: The Purging of Christians Continues

The Patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church has once again publicly intervened to denounce the living conditions of Christians in the Nineveh plains. These are the costs of the Shiite Muslims’ stranglehold and the appearance of Protestant sects in the region.

Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako holds the primate office of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Iraq. His concerns are at odds with those of the rich Church of Germany, which, in its next “synodal path,” is preparing to legitimize a deadly moral relativism, aligned with triumphant secularism in the West. For the Chaldean primate, the urgency is of an order much higher: it is a question of saving the presence of Christianity in the East, especially in the plains of Nineveh. On September 12, 2019, Archbishop Sako signed an opinion piece on “decision-makers and Iraqi citizens” on Saint-Adday, the official site of the Patriarchate. The high prelate denounces an attempt of a “great replacement,” in other words a planned demographic change, in many Christian villages of the Nineveh Plain, for the benefit of Shia Muslims. According to the cardinal, the current conflict in the Nineveh plain aims to eradicate Christians from their historic regions: “the situation has become very dangerous and must be dealt with before it is too late.” The superficial view given by many in the Western media is that of a liberated Iraq since the defeat of the Islamic State (IS) organization. But on the ground, the Shiite militias—supported by Iran—prevent by any possible means the return of displaced Christians and install their co-religionists there. To cope with the emergency, the Chaldean patriarch proposes some priority measures: – “Remain vigilant in the face of destructive plans from both inside and outside Iraq to empty the land of indigenous Iraqis,” i.e., Christians. – “Implement the Iraqi Prime Minister’s decision regarding the withdrawal of armed militias from the cities of the Nineveh plain, whatever their affiliation,” a measure that would restrain the terror that the Shiite militias have imposed over the few Christians (1%) who have returned after the fall of IS. – “Finance development projects that can improve public services and create jobs.” Finally the cardinal emphasizes another priority: “to stop the establishment of certain so-called Christian sects.” The prelate in fact targets several Protestant organizations of the Evangelical type, “which are in fact fundamentalist groups coming from abroad, aimed at changing our national identity and Christian dogma.” It is to be hoped that the courageous appeal of the primate of the Chaldean Church—contrary to many soothing speeches—will find a serious and lasting echo in a region which was the homeland of Abraham and the cradle of humanity.