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New Zealand Herald
July 21 2014
Isis tells Christians to convert or face death
By Patrick Cockburn
The largest flight of Christians in the Middle East since the massacre
of Armenians in Turkey during World War I continues as Isis continues
its hardline policies against those it deems "unbelievers".
The last Christians in northern Iraq are fleeing from places where
their communities have lived for almost 2000 years, as a deadline
passed for them to either convert to Islam, pay a special tax or be
killed.
Isis (Islamic State) issued a decree last week offering Christians the
three options accompanied by the ominous threat that, if they did not
comply by July 20, "then there is nothing to give them but the sword".
Isis, which now rules an area larger than Britain, has already
eliminated many of the ancient Christian communities of eastern Syria.
Christians fleeing Mosul, which was captured by Isis on June 11, are
being stripped of all their possessions.
Mosul is one of the most ancient centres of Christianity and on the
east bank of the Tigris River that flows through the city is a mosque
housing the tomb of the Biblical figure of Jonah.
This is now in danger of being destroyed by Isis, whose version of
Islam is opposed to the worship of tombs, shrines, statues and
pictures.
Tens of thousands of Shabak and Shiah Turkmen, demonised as
polytheists and apostates by Isis, have fled their homes following
raids by Isis gunmen.
The persecution of Christians, of whom there were over one million in
Iraq before the US and British invasion of 2003, was slower to
develop.
But a report by Human Rights Watch says that from July 15 a number of
homes in Mosul were painted with the letter "N" for Nasrani (the
Arabic for Christian).
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11296938
July 21 2014
Isis tells Christians to convert or face death
By Patrick Cockburn
The largest flight of Christians in the Middle East since the massacre
of Armenians in Turkey during World War I continues as Isis continues
its hardline policies against those it deems "unbelievers".
The last Christians in northern Iraq are fleeing from places where
their communities have lived for almost 2000 years, as a deadline
passed for them to either convert to Islam, pay a special tax or be
killed.
Isis (Islamic State) issued a decree last week offering Christians the
three options accompanied by the ominous threat that, if they did not
comply by July 20, "then there is nothing to give them but the sword".
Isis, which now rules an area larger than Britain, has already
eliminated many of the ancient Christian communities of eastern Syria.
Christians fleeing Mosul, which was captured by Isis on June 11, are
being stripped of all their possessions.
Mosul is one of the most ancient centres of Christianity and on the
east bank of the Tigris River that flows through the city is a mosque
housing the tomb of the Biblical figure of Jonah.
This is now in danger of being destroyed by Isis, whose version of
Islam is opposed to the worship of tombs, shrines, statues and
pictures.
Tens of thousands of Shabak and Shiah Turkmen, demonised as
polytheists and apostates by Isis, have fled their homes following
raids by Isis gunmen.
The persecution of Christians, of whom there were over one million in
Iraq before the US and British invasion of 2003, was slower to
develop.
But a report by Human Rights Watch says that from July 15 a number of
homes in Mosul were painted with the letter "N" for Nasrani (the
Arabic for Christian).
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11296938