2008 attacks on Christians in Mosul was a series of attacks which targeted the Christians in

Mosul Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. The Christians of Mosul who were already targeted during the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

left the city en masse heading to

Assyrian Assyrian may refer to: * Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia. * Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire. ** Early Assyrian Period ** Old Assyrian Period ** Middle Assyrian Empire ** Neo-Assyrian Empire * Assyrian ...

villages in Nineveh Plains and

Iraqi Kurdistan Iraqi Kurdistan or Southern Kurdistan ( ku, باشووری کوردستان, Başûrê Kurdistanê) refers to the Kurdish-populated part of northern Iraq. It is considered one of the four parts of "Kurdistan" in Western Asia, which also incl ...

. Both

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

extremists, and

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...

peshmerga The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...

were blamed for the attacks.

Background

Religious minorities in general and Christians in particular were badly affected by the rise of

Islamic fundamentalism Islamic fundamentalism has been defined as a puritanical, revivalist, and reform movement of Muslims who aim to return to the founding scriptures of Islam. Islamic fundamentalists are of the view that Muslim-majority countries should return t ...

after the

invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Ba'athist Iraq, Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one mont ...

. A number of Christians was killed in

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

and

, and on 1 August 2004 a series of explosions targeted Churches in Baghdad, Mosul and

Kirkuk Kirkuk ( ar, كركوك, ku, کەرکووک, translit=Kerkûk, , tr, Kerkük) is a city in Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate, located north of Baghdad. The city is home to a diverse population of Turkmens, Arabs, Kurds, ...

leaving 15 dead and 71 injured. On 13 March 2008, the body of the Chaldean Archbishop of the city,

Paulos Faraj Rahho Paulos Faraj Rahho (also known as Paul Faraj Rahho and Paulos Faradsch Raho; ar, بولس فرج رحو, '; syr, ܦܘܠܘܣ ܦ̮ܪܔ ܪܚܘ, '; 20 November 1942 – February or March 2008) was a Chaldean Catholic prelate who served as the Arc ...

, was found buried in a shallow grave near Mosul. Rahho was the highest ranking Christian cleric to be killed in Iraq.

Attacks

October attacks

The first series of attacks started in October when Christians families were given choice of death or converting to Islam. By the end of the month around 14 Christians were killed and more than 13,000 were forced to flee to Nineveh Plains. The Iraqi government pledged to $900,000 to help the refugees.

November attacks

Seven bodies belonging to Christians were found in the streets of Mosul on early November. A house belonging to

Syriac Catholic The Syriac Catholic Church ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܣܘܪܝܝܬܐ ܩܬܘܠܝܩܝܬܐ, ʿĪṯo Suryayṯo Qaṯolīqayṯo, ar, الكنيسة السريانية الكاثوليكية) is an Eastern Catholic Christian jurisdiction originating in t ...

sisters was attacked and two nuns were killed and a third severely injured. Around 500 families were forced to flee the city as a result, where they found refuge in Churches and with relatives in nearby villages.

Aftermath

2009 attacks

In January 2009 15 Christians were killed in Mosul and more Christians fled to the Nineveh Plains and Christian villages in

seeking safety.

Accusation of Kurdish involvement

These attacks were however blamed on the

Peshmerga The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...

who were forcing Christians out of their homes by threatening them with death or by killing them. Eyewitnesses claimed some of the assailants were identified by their dialect as Kurds trying to pose as Arabs. Rumour circulated that Kurds had secretly targeted the Christians in order to draw them to their side during an anticipated referendum concerning the

Disputed territories of Iraq The disputed territories of Northern Iraq ( ar, المناطق المتنازع عليها في العراق, ku, ناوچە جێناکۆکەکانی عێراق) are regions defined by article 140 of the Constitution of Iraq as being Arabised ...

, of which the Christians form a substantial minority. Some Iraqi and American military officials denied the allegations of Kurdish responsibility.

Younadem Kana Yonadam Yousip Kanna ( syr, ܝܘܢܕܡ ܝܘܣܦ ܟܢܢܐ, also known as Rabi Yacoub Yosep) is an Assyrian politician and the first Christian member of the Iraqi National Assembly since 2003. Kanna also serves as the current Secretary General o ...

, a member of Iraq’s parliament and head of the

Assyrian Democratic Movement The Assyrian Democratic Movement ( syr, ܙܘܥܐ ܕܝܡܘܩܪܛܝܐ ܐܬܘܪܝܐ, Zawʻá Demoqraṭáyá ʼÁṯuráyá, ar, الحركة الديمقراطية الآشورية, ADM), popularly known as Zowaa (), is an Assyrian political party ...

, said media reports, including the London-based

Asharq Al-Awsat ''Asharq Al-Awsat'' ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, Aš-Šarq al-ʾAwsaṭ, meaning "The Middle East") is an Arabic international newspaper headquartered in London. A pioneer of the "off-shore" model in the Arabic press, the paper is often noted f ...

newspaper, "published lies under my name" accusing the Kurds of allowing violence to displace more Mosul Christians. "My statements were changed and fabrications were published under my name," said Kana, who also heads the Assyrian Democratic Movement. He said the accusation against Kurds, first publicized at a press conference 25 Oct. by Sunni parliamentarian Osama al-Nujaifi, were "baseless." Accusations against Kurdish groups were also made by

al-Hadba The al-Hadba party is a political party formed to contest the 2009 Iraqi governorate elections in Ninawa province. It is mostly made up of Sunni Arabs. Its leading member Atheel al-Nujaifi is brother of Usama al-Najafi who is part of the Iraqi N ...

Arab political bloc of Mosul, which is led by

Osama Al Naijafi Osama Abdul Aziz al-Nujaifi or Najifi ( ar, أسامة النجيفي; born c. 1956 in Mosul) is an Iraqi politician and served as one of the three vice presidents of the country, from 2014 to 2015 and 2016 to 2018. As the speaker of the Council ...

and his brother, Atheel, the current governor of

Nineveh Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ban ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Attacks On Christians In Mosul Attacks On Christians In Mosul, 2008 Al-Qaeda activities in Iraq Christianity in Mosul Mass murder in 2008 Mass murder in 2009

2008 attacks on Christians in Mosul