"Religious Cleansing" In Northern Iraq ; "Christians In Life Danger"
ICC Note
Mr. Joel Voordewind, a Dutch parliamentarian stated that the government of Iraq has failed to protect Christians. He described of cases in which Christians were crucified by Muslim militants.
By Eric Leijenaar
Saturday, 05 April 2008 Iraq (BosNewsLife)-A Dutch parliamentarian investigating reports of persecution says about 100,000 Christian refugees in northern Iraq are in life danger as Islamic militants have launched a "religious cleansing campaign" in the region, an influential Dutch Christian news site reported Saturday, April 5.
Manna-vandaag (www.manna-vandaag.nl), a partner of BosNewsLife, said MP Joël Voordewind of Dutch junior coalition party ChristenUnie (ChristianUnion) made his findings in the northern city of Mosul .
The city is an important symbol for Iraqi Christians, as it is opposite the ancient city of Nineveh , where the Bible says Prophet Jonah brought God’s message of repentance.
Voordwind said he has learned that already several priests and nuns have been killed in northern Iraq , while "Christian girls have been kidnapped. In addition, Christians have received death threats from the "Mudjahadeen" in letters and via electronic text messages on mobile phones, the politician added.
Religious Cleansing Campaign
"There is a clear religious cleansing campaign" of non Muslims in the area, he stressed. Voordewind urged Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen and the European Union to pressure the government in Baghdad to ensure that especially Assyrian Christians can defend themselves. "So far Baghdad has refused to protect them," he claimed. There was no immediate reaction from Iraqi and Dutch government officials.
Last year Voordewind made world headlines by claiming that Christians in Iraq , including converts from Islam and people involved in mixed-faith marriages, have been crucified by Muslim militants. Several Iraqi Christians "are nailed to a cross and their arms are tied up with ropes. The ropes are put on fire," he said in comments monitored by BosNewsLife at the time.
Before the US-led invasion began in Iraq , there were at least 750,000 Christians in the mainly Muslim nation, but human rights groups say thousands of them have fled to neighboring countries.
Besides, many Christians are internally displaced because of ongoing violence. Many have fled to northern Iraq , which was seen as more safe, although recent bombings and killings have raised doubts about the security situation there.
