Minorities’ rights, anti-Christian attacks in press

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Iraqi newspapers gave prominence in their Sunday issues to the rights of ethnic and religious minorities in the country, with particular reference to Iraq’s Christians, whom they said have been the target of recent acts of violence. Badr newspaper, the daily mouthpiece of Badr Organization, one of the components of the Shiite Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC) led by Abdelaziz al-Hakeem, said in an article entitled ‘Minorities and challenges’ by its editor-in-chief, Kareem al-Nouri, that minorities are part and parcel of Iraqi society. Citing recent attempts in the city of Mosul to ignite sedition and provoke chaos in the political sphere, the author said that terrorist attacks do not only target Christian minorities, but the country as a whole. Nouri called on Iraqi authorities to activate Article 50 of the law on provincial council elections in accordance with a proposal made by the Presidential Board a few days ago. Following months of heated debate over the contentious provincial council elections law, the Iraqi Parliament voted to remove Article 50, which specifies a quota for minorities in provincial councils, sparking strong reactions from several political blocs representing the country’s Christians as well as other minorities. Under a headline that read ‘Pro-sectarian law,’ the independent daily al-Mashriq newspaper said that sectarianism is more dangerous and feared than cholera and plague. The author of the article, Hatem Hassan, blamed Iraqi authorities for the absence of anti-sectarian laws in the country. Several Christian families have fled Mosul throughout the past few days, while an Iraqi security source said that four Christians were killed in two separate attacks in the city, signaling an increase in the wave of attacks against religious minorities in the northern volatile city. Mosul, the capital city of Ninewa, lies 405 km north of Baghdad. The original city of Mosul stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient biblical city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial areas on both banks, with five bridges linking the two sides. Despite having an amount of Kurdish population, it does not form part of the area controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government Kurdistan RegionG). There are different communities in Mosul like Christians, Shiites and Kurds along with a Sunni majority. The fabric Muslin, long manufactured in Mosul, is named for this city. Another historically important product of the area is Mosul marble. The city is also a historic center for the Nestorian Christianity of the Assyrians, containing the tombs of several Old Testament prophets such as Jonah, Yunus in Arabic, and Nahum. SS (I) 1