The Tragic Exodus of Iraq’s Christians
Posted: June 22, 2014 | Author: Pundit Planet | Filed under: Global, Think Tank, War Room | Tags: BARTILLA, Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan, Mosul, Nineveh, Nineveh Plain, Saddam Hussein, Syria | 3 CommentsAll but defenseless against ISIS and suffering from punishing shortages of vital resources, Iraq’s ancient Christian communities are taking their only option: leave.
Destiny is barking again as far as the town’s Assyrian Christians are concerned. A mere 10-minute drive from Bartilla and other small neighboring Christian towns, jihadists from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have set up their most advanced position on the eastern side of the city of Mosul. There are a dozen Kurdish fighters manning an opposing sunbaked checkpoint. Unsurprisingly, despite the protective presence in the area of other Kurdish peshmerga forces, the 16,000 Christians of Bartilla are wondering if they will face a terminal assault.