17 December 2006
Christmas in Mosul under threat of sharia
A campaign against “non-Muslim dress” is under way in the Iraqi city, targeting mainly women and Christians. Flyers dictate that women should wear a headscarf, that men and women cannot sit next to each other and that soap is forbidden, because “it did not exist in Muhammad’s time”. We report the misery of Christians and an appeal of Patriarch Delly for fasting and prayer
Mosul (AsiaNews) – A crusade is under way to impose Islamic law in Mosul in northern Iraq, a city where threats and violence against Christians have reached the level of real persecution for ideological and political ends. As Christmas draws near, Christians are confined to their homes that have become like “prison” which they dare not leave for fear of kidnappings and killings. It is difficult for them to emigrate because Arab and European countries have decided to close their doors.
Kidnappings and murders are the order of day for Christians in Baghdad too, but in Mosul the situation is different and more worrying. Testimonies that reached AsiaNews claimed that actions directly targeting Christians of Mosul are not motivated solely by lucre – ransom demands, property seizure – but rather there is a political plan behind them. Sunni extremists have this city as their stronghold and they seem to be aiming to set up a so-called Islamic Emirate incorporating the provinces of Salahaddin, Anbar, Diyala, Baghdad and part of Wasit. Mosul would be the capital.
Up to a year ago, members of the Christian community were confident things would change but now they have only words of despair to describe their situation. “We are living the period of Advent, the happiest of the whole year, as if we were in prison. The world is preparing to celebrate while we prepare to die. Who will listen to our cries, who can help us now that we feel like strangers in our own homeland?”
The Patriarch of Babylon for Chaldeans, Emmanuel III Delly, urged all Chaldeans of the world to observe the “Bautha” fast of Nineveh (a feature of the Assyrian liturgy to commemorate the fasting of residents of Nineveh during the time of the prophet Jonah) on 18 and 19 December “so that the Lord may concede the gift of peace to our Iraq, of security and stability and that a climate of brotherhood and charity among the sons of Iraq may come about.”
Campaign against “non-Islamic dress”
Violence against Christians in Mosul escalated after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Many churches and convents were immediately attacked or bombed. Bishops and priests started to be kidnapped. The most horrible event of all was the killing of the Syro-Orthodox priest Paulos Eskandar, whose beheaded body was found on 11 October in the eastern area of Mosul after two days of captivity.
Muslim fundamentalism is impinging more and more on daily life. On 12 December, a group of fundamentalists stopped a bus with Christian students on board; they boarded the bus to distribute flyers dictating that girls should wear the hijab (veil) and that boys should dress in a sombre manner, not in western-style clothes. The same technique was used to get the message across the university: unknown men pasted flyers and posters in areas where Christian students usually meet up. The warning is clear: “Whoever violates the principles of sharia will be punished according to Muslim law.”
In early December, the conductor of a route bus imposed his decision to divide men and women on the vehicle, forbidding them to sit next to each other. Other flyers recently ordered owners of clothes shops to cover mannequins on display with a veil. And tradesmen had to obey, using plastic bags instead of veils. Further, some public toilets have banned the use of soap because it “did not exist in Muhammad’s time”. Orders reach the point of absurdity: restaurants cannot prepare mixed salads with cucumbers and tomatoes because one represents the female and other the male gender.
An important fact to note is that it is not only poor and illiterate people who are swellings the ranks of extremists: university professors and educated people also believe it is right to impose such controls on the population.
Against non-Muslim art
According to Iraqi police, Sunni extremism is supported by foreign terrorists. A new campaign has been launched against “non-Muslim art”. In November, public statues held to be pagan were destroyed. A famous statue in the north of the city, in al Zihour, was destroyed because it portrayed a group of women carrying jars on their shoulders. Other targeted works dated back to the seventies and included statues of some important artists like an Arab poet, Ani Tamman, and a singer of religious music, Mullah Othman al-Mosulli.
The website of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting said that a militant arrested in October explained his group’s objectives during his interrogation: put an end to American occupation, bring down the Iraqi government and introduce sharia in the country
18:20 Posted in IRAQ | Permalink | Comments (5) | 
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First of all let me make a comment regarding this article...Jerimiah chapt 10 verses 2 through 5 clearly state that Christmas is a heathen tradition so why are Christians still celebrating it?
I am a former Christian almighty Allah in His Glory helped me in admitting the Greatest Truth and testifying to the biggest reality to the world. I, however, know fully well that human nature and its disposition refuse to be convinced of certain facts and realities without satisfactory proofs and cogent arguments. Keeping in view man's nature, I feel that this reply of mine would not satisfy those who are not inclined towards, nor do they feel any interest in, searching for the Truth, nor those on whom the light of truth has not dawned. I am, therefore, left with no alternative but to reduce to writing some of the reasons and causes that induced me to embrace Islam and to stick to it. While staying in a European society, I express my joy and jubiliation, that the people living in these societies do not change their religion nor do they deviate from their faith for the sake of economic, political or social temptations nor do they rush to gmbrace any religion, unless it works as a strong incentive and an effective factor to open up their hearts and generate spiritual tranquillity. Otherwise, they remain contented with infidelity and apostasy.
Here then, if one pauses to consider, one will come to the conclusion that my own act, or for that matter, the act of any individual in the European society, of embracing Islam does not imply earning economic profits or attaining social advantages. The matter is rather the other way round. Firstly, we, the peoples of the European society, attach no importance to religious matters. However, if there is an, from among the European society who cares for religion, the aim of such a one is nothing but to find God. As such my own interest in Islam meant nothing but search for the Truth and the direction of right thinking.
Posted by: Linda Allen | 22 December 2006
Yes, some churches were attacked by fanatics. This happens everywhere--even between Muslims!
But here is a new church building, built by a 75 year old man who fled Turkey after his father was killed in 1915 to come to Iraq for safety! They were Armenian Christians.
http://magyartruth.blogspot.com/2006/01/christian-church.html
Posted by: Chief RZ | 02 January 2007
Here is this site depicting clearly how Christians are being killed by muslim thugs around the world everyday and blind Linda comes on board and recites a verse from Jeremiah 10:2-5 "Thus saith the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen.. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest.. with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold... And so on.
Now considering Jeremiah was written some 500 yrs before the birth of Christ makes the argument utterly ridiculous. Furthermore, Christians dont celebrate the tree, the christmas tree is a capitalist plot borrowed from pagan times for people (not nesseraly Christians) to place there presents at the foot of the tree for all to gather and open them on christmas day. Pagans decorated trees 1000's of yrs ago but it was not until the 16th century that trees were brought indoors at Christmas time.
Talk about not seeing the forest for the trees. Linda, There is not a country in the world neighbouring a muslim country living in peace with these barbaric 'heathens'. And as you are now a muslim, you know there's no leaving it, death to apostates. You dont need a religion, you need a psychologist.
Posted by: eloivsdiablo | 07 January 2007
eloivsdiablo, this is exactly what muslims don't understand. They can recite all the verses from the old testament and hold them against Christianity, but no christian actually does the things they are accused of- the crusades are over. What Christian goes on a holy war or commits any religious violence? Islam is the only religion that does any of the vioent things mentioned in the quran, christians just follow the peaceful things. But we can do a little contrast of violence from each prophet: Jesus throwing gamblers out of the synagogue V Mohammed massacring the native people of Mecca.
Posted by: TD | 09 January 2007
First I'd like to state that the crusades were a defensive measure against the muslim hoardes. For almost 1,400 yrs, that has been the reality of Islam. Within a century after the death of mohammed, islam spread throughout the Middle East and across North Africa. It overran the Iberian peninsula and was finally stopped in southern France. It spread eastward as far as the southern Philippines. It was not propagated by fresh-faced young men knocking on doors and announcing: "Hello. I'm from your local mosque. Have you considered the koran?" It was spread by
force – conversion by the sword and still is...
Posted by: eloivsdiablo | 12 January 2007
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