The Christians of Iraq

While the media have been focusing extensively on the rise of ISIS, the crumbling of Al-Maliki, and the Independence of a Kurdish State. There has been little focus on other groups within Iraq. Sunni and Chi3a representatives in the governments and courts have been focused on since 2003, but what about Iraq's Christian population?

Inside Dair Mar Elia - Circa 595AD

That's right. Iraq has a vein of Christian villages and mixed populations living within the vast countryside. They have a presence in Baghdad as well and have been there since the 1st Century AD.

In 2003, the Christian community numbered in 1,500,000 people. However, through war and the ineffective protection offered by the current government, this population has shrank to 400,000.

During the time of Saddam Hussein, Christians were subjected to no special sanctions. The Iraqi military stood to defend their villages against impending threats. Today, a weak democracy that hardly represents the majority has become inefficiently blinded towards this Christian population that once accounted for 7% of Iraq's population.

There are many groups of Christians within Iraq. Some urban living in Baghdad and Basra, others living rurally in Christian villages. Their bloodlines range from Assyrian roots, which have kept Aramaic intact as a language, to Armenian & Western roots. In fact, the Greek Orthodox and Catholic Churches in Iraq directly descend from the Byzantine Empire and the Crusades, respectively, which have found their way into the land of the Tigris and Euphrates.

2008 marked a turning point for this population, which had faced significant abuse and persecution since 2003. Christians started to become a prime target of extremist groups, and a souring economy caused many to flee. nearly 350,000 Iraqi Christians found their way to Syria -- seeking refuge in a country that, at that time, was stable. Unfortunately, things soon became as dangerous in Syria as in Iraq for these refugees. Christians became targets in Syria as well as in Iraq for persecution and violence. 

In 2010, violence against Christians peaked. Illicit discrimination, kidnapping, and murder were on the rise. On October 31st of that year, in Baghdad, an Assyrian Church was taken hostage during Sunday prayers by an extremist Sunni group, soon to be absorbed by ISIS. The church was taken captive with over a hundred individuals inside. 58 were killed.

As the Iraqi government grows weaker and the Iraqi army becomes less effective protecting the people of Iraq, it is possible that this group is in danger of further abuses. While the media focuses on the more glamorous attacks between sunni and Chi3a Iraqis, the Chrisitan population of Iraq suffers unnoticed and unattended.