European Parliament Calls for Support of Christians' Social and Political Rights in Iraq

At a meeting of the European Parliament's team on Christians in the Middle East, Christian leaders and human rights advocates indicated that Christians in Iraq still face threats and pressures despite the defeat of ISIS, calling for the protection of Christian property rights, especially in the Nineveh Plains, the reform of their political representation mechanisms, and the support of Christian civil society organizations. Meanwhile, members of the European Parliament affirmed that many Christians remain committed to staying in their historic homeland of Iraq and need international support.

This call came during a meeting held on June 18 as part of the work of the Parliamentary Team on Christians in the Middle East in the European Parliament. Christian leaders and human rights advocates warned parliament members that ancient Christian communities in Iraq still face severe pressures, despite the military defeat of ISIS, urging European institutions to take practical steps to protect the world's oldest Christian communities.
It is worth noting that the European Parliamentary Team's work serves as an official cross-party forum concerned with protecting religious minorities, monitoring human rights situations, and advocating for the survival of historical communities in countries such as Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon. During the meeting, the Switzerland-based Christian Solidarity International (CSI) organization presented a comprehensive assessment of the challenges facing Christians in Iraq.
Joel Veldkamp, Head of Public Advocacy at the organization, reviewed the history of Christian communities in Iraq for the European Parliament members, describing them as among the oldest Christian communities in the world, with roots extending back nearly two millennia. He noted that the majority of Iraqi Christians descend from the indigenous peoples of the region, including Assyrians and Armenians, and still preserve their linguistic, religious, and cultural heritage.
He confirmed that the number of Christians before 2003 was about 1.5 million, making Iraq at that time home to one of the largest Christian populations in the Middle East. He pointed out that the US-led war in 2003 radically changed this reality, as the security vacuum and the collapse of state authority led to an escalation of sectarian violence and systematic attacks on Christian communities by terrorist organizations and armed groups.
He explained that church bombings, targeted assassinations, kidnappings, and forced displacement drove hundreds of thousands of Christians to leave their homes over the following decade. He also noted that the massacre at Our Lady of Salvation Syriac Catholic Church in Baghdad in 2010, where 58 worshippers were martyred during mass, was one of the deadliest attacks against Christians in Iraq.
He added that the emergence of ISIS in 2014 significantly accelerated the pace of displacement, as about 200,000 Christians fled in a short period after the organization took control of Mosul and overran the Nineveh Plains, which is the historic homeland of Iraqi Christianity. He also indicated that the organization abducted Christian women, while it committed a genocide against the Yazidi community, which included mass executions, enslavement, and widespread abuses.

Challenges Still Haunting Christians
Veldkamp stressed that despite the defeat of ISIS in Iraq in 2017, the security and future of Christian communities remain largely uncertain. He noted that the Nineveh Plains region still experiences instability due to the presence of various armed groups, with reports of land confiscation, harassment, and restrictions on property rights, which continue to limit and undermine the efforts of displaced Christians to return to their areas and begin rebuilding their communities.
Veldkamp also criticized the political representation system of quota seats for religious minorities in parliament, where influential political blocs control the political representation seats for Christians through their loyal parties and candidates, who do not reflect the true representation of the members of the religious minority.
During the session, the organization called on European institutions to encourage both the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government to implement reforms aimed at protecting Christian communities, enhancing the protection of Christian property rights, reforming electoral mechanisms to ensure genuine representation for Christians, and strengthening cooperation with local Christian civil society organizations, particularly the Hammurabi Human Rights Organization.
Veldkamp affirmed in his speech that the future of Christians in Iraq remains highly uncertain, but he stressed their attachment to their historic land, noting that Iraqi Christians have not yet lost hope, continue to persevere, and deserve our support.

Nine Villages Reconstructed in Nineveh Plains
On the other hand, Archbishop Bashar Warda of the Chaldean Archdiocese of Erbil said in a press interview that the situation in Iraq has become more stable than it was twelve years ago, and Christians are now free to practice their religious rituals without fear.
Archbishop Warda said in a meeting with the international charity Aid to the Church in Need in the United States that many towns and villages in the Nineveh Plains have achieved a greater degree of security, and that nine villages that were under ISIS control have been fully rebuilt, allowing more than 10,000 Christian families to return to their homes.
However, Archbishop Warda, despite this, expressed his complaint that the Iraqi economy remains "unstable" and the country still suffers from corruption, noting that many Christian youth struggle to find job opportunities, which he considers "one of the most important reasons behind the ongoing difficulty in preserving the Christian presence in Iraq."

Via AINA International Agency