Iraq Pledges $900K to Help Displaced Christians

November 2, 2008

Author: Staff Writer

Source: CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/11/02/iraq.christians/index.html

Iraq's president on Sunday pledged nearly $900,000 to help Christian families who have fled the northern Iraqi city of Mosul because of killings and threats.

The money -- equivalent to 1 billion Iraqi dinars -- will help safeguard "the rights and freedoms of Christians" in Iraq, according to a statement from President Jalal Talabani's office.

A committee of Christian leaders and representatives from Talabani's office will supervise the distribution of the money, the statement said.

More than half of Mosul's Christian population -- an estimated 13,000 people, or 2,300 families -- fled the city last month, though the departures tapered toward the month's end, Nineveh province's Deputy Gov. Khasro Goran told CNN on Tuesday.

Authorities believe the attacks, which left at least 14 Iraqi Christians dead, may have been prompted by Christian demonstrations in early October.

Hundreds of Christians had taken to the streets in Mosul and surrounding villages and towns, demanding adequate representation on provincial councils, whose members will be chosen in local elections in January.

The violence that followed those demonstrations prompted the government to dispatch more security forces to patrol the city. Violence has decreased as a result, Iraqi officials said.

Last month, U.S. Department of Defense spokesman Geoff Morrell said the anti-Christian attacks and threats are partly "due to elements of al Qaeda that still enjoy some ability to operate up there."

Mosul is one of the last Iraqi cities where al Qaeda in Iraq has a significant presence and routinely carries out attacks.