22/07/2023

Returning from Istanbul, Chaldean Patriarch Mor Louis Raphael Sako arrives in Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq

ERBIL —  On Friday, the Chaldean Patriarch Mor Louis Raphael Sako arrived in Erbil of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KEI) returning from Istanbul, Turkey.

The Patriarch was received at the airport by senior official. He is scheduled to reside there temporarily in a monastery, after his withdrawal from the Patriarchal Residence in Baghdad.

Earlier, Patriarch Sako had announced that he would not return to Baghdad until the decree of the Iraqi President Abd al-Latif Rashid is revoked.

Great reactions at the local and international levels were sparked, leading the Presidency to issue other statements to clarify that the decree the does not target the patriarch’s status and religious authority, it is only for legal correction.