IRAQ: Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian community holds vigil in Bartella to commemorate 1933 Simele Massacre and 2014 Islamic State invasion

BARTELLA, Iraq — With a significant turnout, the committee representing five Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian political parties in Iraq, including the Bethnahrin Patriotic Union (Huyodo Bethnahrin Athroyo, HBA), organized a memorial vigil to honor the victims of the 1933 Simele Massacre and to remember the 2014 displacement of Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people from Nineveh Plains by the Islamic State (ISIS).

The vigil took place in front of the HBA headquarters in the Nineveh Plains town of Bartella and saw the participation of representatives from various Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian parties, clerics, and prominent local figures.

The event began with a moment of silence in memory of Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian martyrs, followed by the Iraqi national anthem. HBA Co-Chair Yusef Yacoub Matti delivered a joint statement on behalf of the five parties.

Matti reflected on the exclusion of the Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people during the Simele events, highlighting their absence from the state census at that time. He called for formal recognition of the Simele Massacre and compensation for the Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people.

Matti also addressed the tragic events in Nineveh Plains, confirming the killing of thousands of Chaldeans–Syriacs–Assyrians and Yezidis by ISIS, as well as the ongoing demographic changes in the region resulting from the displacement.