19/07/2023

Alan Sarkis in Nidaa al-Watan: Targeting of Chaldean Patriarch Sako exposes reach of Iran and plight of Christian community in Iraq

BEIRUT — In an article in Lebanese newspaper Nidaa al-Watan, Alan Sarkis shed light on the distressing situation faced by Roman Catholic Cardinal and Chaldean Patriarch Mor Louis Raphael Sako in Iraq. His decision to leave Baghdad for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) over security concerns adds to the long-standing challenges endured by Christians in the region, including killings and displacement.

Sarkis highlights that the plight of Patriarch Sako and the aggressive campaign launched against is directed by Iranian-backed armed groups within Iraq.

One of these factions, the so-called Babylon Movement led by Rayan al-Kildani, who has been sanctioned by the United States.

Ostensibly a Chaldean Catholic political movement, in truth, the Babylon Movement is a fringe faction that chiefly represents the personal interests of Rayan al-Kildani instead of the Christian population. Backed by Iran, the group has strong connections to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Badr Organization. Its military wing, the Babylon Brigades (also called Brigade 50), was created by Kata’ib al-Imam Ali, which is under Iranian control. Despite advertising itself as a Chaldean Catholic and Christian unit, the organization consists mainly of Shia Arab and Shabak troops.

Tensions escalated between the Babylon Movement and Patriarch Sako due to the Patriarch’s rejection of the expropriation of Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian property by the group and its allies.

This reprehensible act goes against moral principles and reveals a disturbing plan to undermine the Iraqi Christian presence through Iranian influence. Despite these challenges, Sarkis emphasizes Patriarch Sako’s unwavering commitment to directing the Christians of Iraq to resist surrendering to these malicious schemes.

The relocation of the Patriarch serves as a stark reminder of the struggles faced by Christians in Iraq for decades. Sarkis’s article sheds much-needed light on the issues affecting the Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian community and calls for greater attention to protect their rights and heritage in the face of adversity.