Rome, Italy, Jul 26, 2007 / 08:20 am
The Iraqi ambassador to the Holy See, Albert Edward Ismail Yelda, said this week Christians in the that country “are the seeds of the land of Mesopotamia, and I don’t think there is a force on this earth strong enough to eradicate them.”
In an interview with the SIR news agency, Yelda spoke of the persecution of Christians in Iraq, “which the Holy See follows with particular concern.” He condemned “all of the atrocities committed against Christians in Iraq and other minorities by radical and extremist groups in collusion with and sustained by those who supported the former regime.”
“Islam as a religion is quite distant from these actions” that “seek to create chaos in order to undermine the new government’s efforts in the fight against terrorism, extremism and religious radicalism,” he stated.
Asked about the idea of creating a Christian enclave in Nineveh, the ambassador noted that “no plan exists for a separate zone for Christians. Most Christians in Iraq do not want it. They are spread out all over the country and have lived side by side with Shiites, Sunnis, Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen and other religious minorities. I hope they continue to peacefully coexist in the conservation and exercise of their own constitutional rights,” Yelda said.