Tweet
Gospel Herald
Feb 28 2015
Assyrian Christians Claim ISIS Assaults Tantamount to Genocide of 1915,
Ask 'Civilized World' to React Swiftly, Decisively
By Isaiah Narciso
Relatives of Egyptian Coptic men killed in Libya mourn at their house
in al-Our village, in Minya governorate, south of Cairo February 16,
2015. Thousands of traumatized mourners gathered on Monday at the
Coptic church in al-Our village south of Cairo, struggling to come to
terms with the fate of compatriots who paid a gruesome price for
simply seeking work in Libya. Thirteen of 21 Egyptians beheaded by
Islamic State came from the impoverished dirt lanes of al-Our,
violence that prompted the Egyptian military to launch an air strike
on Islamic State militant targets in Libya. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih
The Islamic terror group known as ISIS continued its march across Iraq
and Syria this week, tearing down artifacts and persecuting religious
minorities. However, they have directed much of their wrath against
Assyrian Christians and their ancient culture.
According to Peter BetBasoo of Assyrian International News Agency,
ISIS has carried out atrocities against Assyrian Christians in both
Syria and Iraq. These actions included murders, kidnappings of
hundreds of men, women, and children, and teardowns of cultural
resources, including burning down churches and priceless artifacts as
shown in a YouTube video.
Like Us on Facebook
"This is genocide -- there is no other word for it," BetBasso wrote.
"This is the erasure of a nation from the land which it has inhabited
for 6764 years."
BetBasoo noted the irony surrounding the timing of the ISIS attacks,
noting that it is currently taking place on the 100th anniversary of
the Armenian Genocide.
"It is ironic that the ISIS attacks on Assyrians in Syria is occurring
in 2015, the centennial anniversary of the 1915 Turkish genocide of
Assyrians, Greeks and Armenians, in which 750,000 Assyrians were
killed (75 percent), 500,000 Pontic Greeks and 1.5 million Armenians,"
BetBasoo wrote.
BetBasoo contended that ISIS knew what it was doing when the terror
group carried out their attacks on important historical dates for
Assyrian Christians.
"ISIS is pretty savvy and is historically informed," BetBasoo wrote.
"When ISIS pushed into the Nineveh Plain in Iraq last year, forcing
200,000 Assyrians to flee their homes, they began their invasion on
Aug. 7, which is the official Assyrian Martyrs Day, a day on which
each year Assyrians remember their fallen."
BetBasoo argued that ISIS was sending a message through its
persecution of Assyrian Christians that it plans to destroy "the very
foundations of world civilization."
"It is in Mesopotamia where civilization as we know it began,"
BetBasoo wrote. "Destroying Assyrian artifacts is ISIS's message to
the world that it aims to eradicate the very basis of its civilization
because it is not Islamic."
According to Sean Savage of JNS.org, ISIS has attacked 35 Assyrian
villages along the Khabur River in Hasaka, a city in northeastern
Syria. Jeff Gardner, a spokesman for Restore Nineveh Now Initiative,
spoke about ISIS actions against Assyrian Christians.
"We are absolutely appalled, but not surprised, by the actions of
[ISIS]," Gardner said. "They continue to do what they do - terrorize,
murder and pillage."
Savage reported that local Arab tribal leaders in Syria have attempted
to act as intermediaries between ISIS and the Assyrian Christian
community. The leaders wanted both sides to do a prisoner swap and
urged ISIS to release civilian Assyrian Christians caught in the
crossfire.
"Immediately for Syria, we're calling for much broader international
intervention," Gardner said. "We are calling on the public to support
our relief efforts. Both governments and people need to respond to
this crisis."
According to Savage, the video showed ISIS fighters supposedly
destroying priceless artifacts related to the Assyrian Empire and
other ancient civilizations inside the Mosul Museum in Iraq. ISIS
justified its destruction by claiming that they were forms of idolatry
under its radical interpretation of Islam.
"The Prophet Mohammed took down idols with his bare hands when he went
into Mecca," an ISIS fighter said. "We were ordered by our prophet to
take down idols and destroy them, and the companions of the prophet
did this after this time, when they conquered countries."
BetBasoo warned that the international community must react to ISIS
soon or there will be dire consequences for the entire world.
"The civilized world must find the courage to accept the force of its
moral superiority and act on it," BetBasoo wrote. "If it does not, the
world will fall into shadow."
Gardner told JNS.org that would take more than mere words and air
strikes from the international community to take out ISIS and protect
minority groups in the region.
"We need to move past just airstrikes and either mobilize
international forces or continue to train indigenous forces like the
Assyrians," Gardner said.
http://www.gospelherald.com/articles/54559/20150228/assyrian-christians-claim-isis-assaults-tantamount-to-genocide-of-1915-ask-civilized-world-to-react-swiftly-decisively.htm
Feb 28 2015
Assyrian Christians Claim ISIS Assaults Tantamount to Genocide of 1915,
Ask 'Civilized World' to React Swiftly, Decisively
By Isaiah Narciso
Relatives of Egyptian Coptic men killed in Libya mourn at their house
in al-Our village, in Minya governorate, south of Cairo February 16,
2015. Thousands of traumatized mourners gathered on Monday at the
Coptic church in al-Our village south of Cairo, struggling to come to
terms with the fate of compatriots who paid a gruesome price for
simply seeking work in Libya. Thirteen of 21 Egyptians beheaded by
Islamic State came from the impoverished dirt lanes of al-Our,
violence that prompted the Egyptian military to launch an air strike
on Islamic State militant targets in Libya. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih
The Islamic terror group known as ISIS continued its march across Iraq
and Syria this week, tearing down artifacts and persecuting religious
minorities. However, they have directed much of their wrath against
Assyrian Christians and their ancient culture.
According to Peter BetBasoo of Assyrian International News Agency,
ISIS has carried out atrocities against Assyrian Christians in both
Syria and Iraq. These actions included murders, kidnappings of
hundreds of men, women, and children, and teardowns of cultural
resources, including burning down churches and priceless artifacts as
shown in a YouTube video.
Like Us on Facebook
"This is genocide -- there is no other word for it," BetBasso wrote.
"This is the erasure of a nation from the land which it has inhabited
for 6764 years."
BetBasoo noted the irony surrounding the timing of the ISIS attacks,
noting that it is currently taking place on the 100th anniversary of
the Armenian Genocide.
"It is ironic that the ISIS attacks on Assyrians in Syria is occurring
in 2015, the centennial anniversary of the 1915 Turkish genocide of
Assyrians, Greeks and Armenians, in which 750,000 Assyrians were
killed (75 percent), 500,000 Pontic Greeks and 1.5 million Armenians,"
BetBasoo wrote.
BetBasoo contended that ISIS knew what it was doing when the terror
group carried out their attacks on important historical dates for
Assyrian Christians.
"ISIS is pretty savvy and is historically informed," BetBasoo wrote.
"When ISIS pushed into the Nineveh Plain in Iraq last year, forcing
200,000 Assyrians to flee their homes, they began their invasion on
Aug. 7, which is the official Assyrian Martyrs Day, a day on which
each year Assyrians remember their fallen."
BetBasoo argued that ISIS was sending a message through its
persecution of Assyrian Christians that it plans to destroy "the very
foundations of world civilization."
"It is in Mesopotamia where civilization as we know it began,"
BetBasoo wrote. "Destroying Assyrian artifacts is ISIS's message to
the world that it aims to eradicate the very basis of its civilization
because it is not Islamic."
According to Sean Savage of JNS.org, ISIS has attacked 35 Assyrian
villages along the Khabur River in Hasaka, a city in northeastern
Syria. Jeff Gardner, a spokesman for Restore Nineveh Now Initiative,
spoke about ISIS actions against Assyrian Christians.
"We are absolutely appalled, but not surprised, by the actions of
[ISIS]," Gardner said. "They continue to do what they do - terrorize,
murder and pillage."
Savage reported that local Arab tribal leaders in Syria have attempted
to act as intermediaries between ISIS and the Assyrian Christian
community. The leaders wanted both sides to do a prisoner swap and
urged ISIS to release civilian Assyrian Christians caught in the
crossfire.
"Immediately for Syria, we're calling for much broader international
intervention," Gardner said. "We are calling on the public to support
our relief efforts. Both governments and people need to respond to
this crisis."
According to Savage, the video showed ISIS fighters supposedly
destroying priceless artifacts related to the Assyrian Empire and
other ancient civilizations inside the Mosul Museum in Iraq. ISIS
justified its destruction by claiming that they were forms of idolatry
under its radical interpretation of Islam.
"The Prophet Mohammed took down idols with his bare hands when he went
into Mecca," an ISIS fighter said. "We were ordered by our prophet to
take down idols and destroy them, and the companions of the prophet
did this after this time, when they conquered countries."
BetBasoo warned that the international community must react to ISIS
soon or there will be dire consequences for the entire world.
"The civilized world must find the courage to accept the force of its
moral superiority and act on it," BetBasoo wrote. "If it does not, the
world will fall into shadow."
Gardner told JNS.org that would take more than mere words and air
strikes from the international community to take out ISIS and protect
minority groups in the region.
"We need to move past just airstrikes and either mobilize
international forces or continue to train indigenous forces like the
Assyrians," Gardner said.
http://www.gospelherald.com/articles/54559/20150228/assyrian-christians-claim-isis-assaults-tantamount-to-genocide-of-1915-ask-civilized-world-to-react-swiftly-decisively.htm