Beth Nahrin Patriotic Union Commemorates Simele Massacres and 2014 ISIS Displacement in Baghdeda Dialogue

BAGHDEDA, Beth Nahrin – In a solemn and reflective assembly that bridged historical tragedy with contemporary suffering, the Beth Nahrain Patriotic Union party (Huyodo Beth Nahrain Athroyo, HBA) convened a dialogue session in Baghdeda, Nineveh Plain, on Saturday, August 9, 2025. The event focused on commemorating the profound tragedies endured by the Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian people, particularly the Simele Massacres of 1933 and the mass displacement of 2014, precipitated by the ISIS-led invasion of the Nineveh Plain. 

The session included interventions from distinguished participants, among them former HBA president and Bethnahrin National Council (Mawtbo Umthoyo d’Bethnahrin, MUB) member Yousif Yaqoob Matti, doctoral researcher in law Yaqoob Yousif Mammo, and Hannan Matti Touma, president of the Beth Nahrin Women’s Organization. The discussion was moderated by writer and Bethnahrin National Council member Ablahad Hanna Saka.

The speakers addressed the political, historical, legal, spiritual, and social dimensions of these events, highlighting their profound impact on the identity and existence of the Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian people in their ancestral homeland of Beth Nahrin (Mesopotamia). They emphasized that the tragedy of forced displacement remains unresolved, with its material and psychological repercussions continuing to burden the displaced.

The participants urged the international community and human rights organizations to take concrete and decisive measures to guarantee the dignified return of the Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian people to their ancestral homeland, provide compensation for the losses and damages they have endured, and implement policies to safeguard them from future displacement and marginalization.  

The session also featured firsthand testimonies detailing experiences of loss and suffering, alongside practical recommendations aimed at preserving the community’s collective memory and preventing the recurrence of such atrocities. 

The event concluded with the screening of a documentary film that vividly depicted the scale of the tragedy endured by this people before, during, and after their forced displacement. The film underscored the political, societal, and psychological impacts, serving as a living testament to the necessity of upholding historical rights and working toward a secure and stable future.