Hurmiz Malik Chikko ( syr, ܗܘܪܡܘܙ ܡܵܠܸܟ ܟ̰ܝܟܘ), also sometimes spelled Hormiz Malek Chikko, (1934 - December 2, 1963) was an Assyrian advocate and army leader. He led the Assyrian armed struggle against the ruling Ba'ath Party in Iraq from the late 1950s until his death in 1963 and promoted Assyrian autonomy in the Nineveh Plains during his life.

Early life and family

Chikko was born in 1934 in the village of Diana, Northern Iraq. He was the son of Malik Chikko of the clan of Dadosh, Upper Tyari, and the nephew of Malik Yaqo D’Malik Ismail, the leader of Upper Tyari Tribe. His older brother was Gewargis Malik Chikko, another Assyrian advocate who was the head of the High Committee of Christian affairs in Iraq and a founding member of the Chicago-branch of the

Assyrian Universal Alliance Assyrian Universal Alliance ( syr, ܚܘܝܕܐ ܬܒ̣ܝܠܝܐ ܐܬܘܪܝܐ, ar, الاتحاد الأشوري العالمي; fa, اتحادیه جهانی آشوریان), usually abbreviated as AUA and popularly known as Khoyada (English: ''U ...

Assyrian activism

Chikko commanded the Assyrian front against the Iraqi Ba’thist Regime in the late 1950s and early 1960s. His goals were to gain autonomy for Assyrians in Iraq, protect Assyrian and

Yazidi Yazidis or Yezidis (; ku, ئێزیدی, translit=Êzidî) are a Kurmanji-speaking endogamous minority group who are indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran. The ma ...

lands in the northern Iraq from Arabization and

Kurdification Kurdification is a cultural change in which people, territory, or language become Kurdish. This can happen both naturally (as in Turkish Kurdistan) or as a deliberate government policy (as in Iraq after the 2003 invasion or in Syria after Syri ...

policies, and to protect the local Assyrian and Yazidi communities from the crossfire of the conflict between the Iraqi Central Government 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 ...

leadership.

Death

Chikko was killed in the Battle of Aloka on December 2, 1963 at the age of 29, along with six other Assyrian fighters. His death was thought by many to be a turning point that would allow for even more persecution of Assyrians in Kore Gavana, the Assyrian village that he lived in for most of his life. Kore Gavana, along with many other Assyrian-majority villages in Iraq's

Dohuk Governorate ar, محافظة دهوك , image_skyline = Collage_of_Dohuk_Governorate.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = , image_flag = , image_seal = ...

, were eventually annexed by the

Kurdistan Regional Government The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) ( ku, حکوومەتی هەرێمی کوردستان, ''Hikûmetî Herêmî Kurdistan'') is the official executive body of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq. The cabinet is selected by the m ...

Legacy

Chikko is viewed by many Assyrians and Yazidis today as a martyr for their protection during a time of instability, as well as a martyr for the Assyrian nationalist cause. He and his family are mentioned in the Assyrian songs ''Chikko'' by Sargon Gabriel and ''Korehgawana'' by Juliana Jendo. There was controversy among the international Assyrian community during the

2017 Kurdistan Region independence referendum An independence referendum for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq was held on 25 September 2017, with preliminary results showing approximately 92.73 percent of votes cast in favour of independence. Despite reporting that the independence referendum ...

, when an image of Chikko's statue in the village of Kore Gavana covered with Kurdish flags was surfaced. This was seen by many Assyrians as an attempt by the Kurdistan Regional Government to Kurdify Chikko's Assyrian nationalist legacy.

References

Assyrian nationalists Assyrian military leaders Iraqi Assyrian people Iraqi Christians 1934 births 1963 deaths Guerrillas killed in action {{Iraq-stub