March 07, 2006

Assyrian Kamil Sulaiman Hurmiz, who owns a factory in Dawwasa Assyrian quarters of Mosul, was threatened unless he pays huge amounts of money to those who threatened him. Mr. Hurmiz locked his shop and left his home and the town.

March 07, 2006

Assyrian Sinan Abd al-Jabbar, who was kidnapped last Saturday (March 4), was murdered. His body was found thrown in Hay al-Tahrir quarters in Mosul as his family failed to pay the $50,000 ransom.

Sinan was married with one baby of 5 months young.

March 06,2006

In a phone call with Giwargis Samuel in Mosul, Mr. Samuel stated that fundamentalists are sending threatening letters to Assyrians Christians in town telling them to leave Mosul or face death.

March 02, 2006

Threats against Assyrians continue in Mosul. Tens of Assyrian families have left the Dargazliyya quarters in Mosul due to threats on their lives. Today, threats covered Assyrians in al-Wahda quarters, near al-Sabireen mosque. Mr. Sheba Keena, a teacher in the Vocational High School, received a letter threatening to kill him if he did not move out of the quarter in which he had lived since 1984. His neighbor was threatened earlier and his home was set on fire. Other Assyrian engineers have quit their good jobs and left their homes due to threats, including, engineer Nelson, General Manager for the Department of Water and Sewage for Mosul Governorate, and Mr. Ramzi, General Manager for the Yarmook Water Project.

The Iraqi police and army are standing helpless; they have proven that they can neither protect the Assyrian people from the fundamentalists nor assist them as they have lost everything and were escaping towards the unknown.

February 27, 2006

A car bomb went off in al-Ameen quarters of Baghdad at around 7:00 p.m. on Monday. The bomb exploded and killed Mahir Toma Oshana minutes after he left his home. Mahir was born in 1967. He was married and had three young children. His sister Linda Toma, who lives in Norway, verified what happened after receiving the sad news from her parents in Iraq.

February 24, 2006

Ni'mat Mattai Jiddo was killed by fundamentalists in Mosul. Details are not yet available. Ni'mat was married and had two children.

February 06, 2006

Islamic Militant Group Demands from non-Muslims in Iraq to Halt Their Religious Rituals

In Ramadi, west of Baghdad, leaflets were distributed over around 1000 protesters by an Islamic militant group called the al-Janah al-Askari li Jaysh al-Haq (The Military Wing for the Army of Justice). In the leaflets, the Islamic militant group stated that it will attack Danish and non-Muslim targets in Iraq. The group asked all its fighters to activate their military operations and to have the 500 Danish army personnel in Iraq as its first target. The militant group demanded from all non-Muslims to halt their religious rituals in churches and other worship places because they insulted Islam and Muslims.

January 29, 2006

According to Elaph, Muslim students in Mosul University beat tens of Christian students. This occurred days after a Danish newspaper published an insulting caricature drawing of Muslim prophet Mohammad. Muslim clerics in Mosul, under pressure from Islamic militias, issued fatwa (religious edict) calling their followers to "expel the Crusaders and infidels from the streets, schools, and institutions because they offended the person of the prophet in Denmark."

January 29, 2006

BOMBS TARGET 6 CHURCHES IN IRAQ
Today, Sunday, six churches were bombed in Iraq. In Baghdad, a car bomb detonated at 4:10 p.m. outside St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in the eastern Baghdad suburb of Sina'a. About 20 minutes later, another vehicle exploded outside the Anglican Church in eastern Baghdad's Nidhal area. The Churches of Mar Addai Catholic Church in al-Binook and St. Petros and Polous Orthodox Churches were bombed as well. Simultaneously, in the northern city of Kirkuk, the Church of the Virgin in Kirkuk was bombed at 4:30 p.m. That explosion came 15 minutes after another car bomb exploded outside St. Ephrem Orthodox Church. Three are confirmed dead, including Fadi R. Elias, 13 years old originally from Alqosh, and many wounded.

January 23, 2006

Another Christian is kidnapped. Yonis Sulaiman Yonan is from the Assyrian town of Karamles. He had lived in Baghdad for decades. He is in the business of repairing giant generators and medical equipments. On Friday, January 20, 2006, a stranger asked him to fix his generator. Mr. Yonan accompanied the man and has not returned home since. However, a message from his cell phone to his son's phone stated that he is doing well and that he has been kidnapped. No demands have been made yet and the fate of Mr. Yonan is unknown at this time. 

January 20, 2006

Ammo Baba, tied, eye-folded, beaten, and then robbed
A group of armed men raided the home of the former Iraqi football (soccer) player and coach Emmanuel David, better known as Ammo Baba, in Zayoona, in the center of Baghdad.
The 74 years old former coach Baba told the police: "The armed men tie me up, folded my eyes, and began to beat me up." The armed men stole Baba's money and belongings. Most recently, Ammo Baba received some donations from Iraqi officials to cover necessary medical treatment outside Iraq. Ammo Baba has diabetes, which resulted in the amputation of two of his right foot toes in a surgery he underwent last year in Amman, Jordan. He has been suffering from poor vision lately as well. Ammo Baba stated that stealing his money would delay his treatment and threaten his life.
As the coach of the Iraqi national football team, Ammo Baba led Iraq to three titles in the Arabian Gulf football tournaments and the gold medal at the 1982 Asian Games in India.

January 17, 2006

A group disguised in the Iraqi National Guards uniforms knocked on the door of Deacon Sami Matti Sliwa (known also as Abu Addison). As the door was opened, they pushed themselves in, began to search the house, brought terror to the family, and when they found nothing they took Deacon Sliwa away. Two hours later, they called the family and told them that Deacon Sliwa was a hostage and that they were a kidnapping and robbery gang and demanded ransom. Deacon Sliwa is not a member of any political group or organization and he is the only provider of his family.

January 07, 2006

The Christian Science Monitor named female US freelancer Jill Carroll as the kidnapped journalist in Baghdad, Iraq. The kidnapping occured in the western Baghdad's Adil neighborhood on January 7, 2006. The body of her Assyrian interpreter, Allan Enwiya, 32, was later found in the same neighborhood. Enwiya was able to tell soldiers that Carroll had been kidnapped before he died from his wounds.

January 01, 2006

Ayad Loqa Lazar (born in 1962 in Kirkuk), a member of the Assyrian Democratic Movement), was attacked and murdered today at 7:00 a.m. by terrorists while on duty in Dora district. Ayad was married and had two children.   

January 01, 2006

During demonstrations today in the quarters of Raheem Awa in Kirkuk, where Assyrians and Kurds live, Youkhana Yaqo Youkhana (born in 1936 in the Assyrian village of Deri) was killed by mistake by American troops who were shooting to clear up a demonstartion protesting the high prices of fuel. Youkhana was heading home from his work when he was caught up in the middle of the demonstration. Youkhana Yaqo is the father of Emad Youkhana, a member of the Assyrian Democratic Movement.