October, 2008

Iraq: Christians flee targeted terror        

 'And the people of Nineveh believed God.' (Jonah 3:5a ESV)

This verse speaks of a pivotal point in the history of the Assyrians: the day they turned from being a people against God to being a people of God. Tradition has it that after turning to the God of Israel the Assyrians formed strong diplomatic and cultural ties with Jerusalem. Upon hearing of the resurrection of Jesus the 'people of Nineveh' again 'believed God' and embraced Jesus Christ as Saviour. The Assyrian Church of the East is the oldest Christian denomination in the world. Once a mighty warrior nation, the Assyrians became a great missionary nation until the Arab Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia in the 7th Century ushered in an era of endless persecution, punctuated by massacres at the hands of invading Arabs, Mongols and Kurds. The Assyrians fought with the Allies against the Ottoman Turks in WW1 but were subsequently abandoned to genocidal massacres after the Allied withdrawal.

Iraq's sizable and ancient Jewish community (descendants of the Babylonian Captives)! was 'cleansed' out of Iraq in the early 1950s. Today a fa mous Muslim war-cry is coming true: 'After Saturday comes Sunday' -- after we deal with the Jews we'll deal with the Christians. A little over 50 years since the Jews were eliminated, Iraq's Christian community is facing genocide. First a campaign of abductions, killings, forced conversions, church bombing and other acts of terror sent Christians fleeing north out of Basra and Baghdad. But not only has Mosul become the base of al-Qaeda in Iraq, the status of northern Iraq is hotly contested by numerous political, ethnic and armed groups, making it increasingly dangerous and volatile.

Terrorism against Christians in Mosul has escalated during October. Twelve Christians have been assassinated in the past two weeks, including a 15-year-old boy shot to death in front of his home. Violence and threats have produced what the governor of Nineveh province, Duraid Mohammed Kashmoula, describes as 'a major displacement'. The UN's Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) re! ported on Sunday 12 October that some 750 Christian famili es, totalling about 3750 individuals, have fled their homes in Mosul over recent days as Sunni Muslim militants escalate their attacks against Christians. Most of the displaced Christians are now living with relatives or sheltering in churches and monasteries in Christian-majority villages across Nineveh. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whose political survival depends on Western support and protection, has deployed an extra 1000 police to the region to protect churches and Christians.


The escalation in terror may be linked to the Christian community's recent attempts to protect its interests and future:

• Assyrian Christians are increasingly taking up arms for self-defence and joining the police force in record numbers;
• they are protesting the loss of their political representation -- on 24 September the al-Maliki government voted to abolish Article 50 of the Iraqi Provincial Election Law which reserved seats for minorities;
• some Assyri! ans are calling for the creation of an autonomous Christia n-ruled province adjoining the Kurdish region, a controversial issue dividing the Christian community.

Though many Muslims are actually supportive of them, these actions are totally contrary to Islam and as such inflame Islamists as well as other groups with various political and ethnic agendas.

PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY FOR --

• God himself to be the shield and encourager of his people, drawing them close, hearing their prayers, intervening on their behalf and increasing their faith.

'It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. (Psalm 118:8 ESV)'
'But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. (Psalm 3:3 ESV)'
'Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked. (Psalm 82:4 ESV)'

• God to frustrate the plans of the wicked, bringing their unjust, repressive and genocidal plans to ruin. (Psalm 1! 46:9)
• God to intervene in Iraq: crushing the jihadists; disempowering the Islamists; softening the intolerant and awakening the uninterested. May the Spirit of God breathe love and mercy over the land and into hearts so that his people may be preserved and empowered as his witnesses in Iraq.