Catholic Church in Iraq

The Latest

Cardinal Pietro Parolin gives an intervention during a panel discussion hosted by Hungary at the UN General Assembly in NYC, Sept. 27, 2019.

At UN, Holy See requests increased aid for Middle Eastern Christians

Sep 28, 2019

As displaced Christians return to their homes in the Middle East, the Vatican Secretary of State encouraged U.N. representatives Friday... Read more

The Church of Mar Behnam and Mart Sarah in Qaraqosh, Iraq celebrates Christmas Mass Dec. 25, 2018 before the church's renovation.

Iraqi church formerly defaced by ISIS rededicated on Assumption feast

Aug 16, 2019

By Courtney Mares

An Iraqi church damaged and defaced by the Islamic State in 2014 was rededicated Thursday for the parish’s celebration of... Read more

Customs and Border Protection Revenue Division sign

Chaldean Catholic dies in Iraq after U.S. deportation

Aug 9, 2019

By Matt Hadro

Christian leaders and local legislators have mourned the death of a Chaldean Christian who had been deported to Iraq by... Read more

Catholics from Syria and Iraq walk the Chartres pilgrimage June 10, 2019.

Pentecost pilgrimages in France, Middle East link Catholics in prayer

Jun 19, 2019

By Courtney Mares

Catholics walked through Syria’s Wadi al-Nasara, or “Valley of the Christians,” this Pentecost, praying the rosary, alternating between the Arabic... Read more

Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil speaks at Georgetown University on Feb. 15.

Archbishop of Erbil: Is the US abandoning Christians at risk in Iraq?

May 17, 2019

Archbishop Bashar Warda, one of the leading voices on behalf of persecuted and displaced Christians in Iraq, released today an... Read more

Young Chaldean Catholics refugees from Iraq perform a Christmas choral concert in Beirut, Lebanon.

Iraq’s Chaldean Catholic refugees wait to leave Lebanon

Dec 23, 2018

By Hannah Brockhaus

On the last Saturday before Christmas, a community of Iraqi refugees living in Lebanon’s capital city of Beirut gathered together... Read more

Pope Francis meets with Nobel Peace prize winner Nadia Murad Dec. 20, 2018.

Pope Francis meets with Nobel Peace prize winner Nadia Murad

Dec 20, 2018

By Courtney Mares

Pope Francis met Thursday with the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize winner Nadia Murad, a survivor of ISIS enslavement and an... Read more

A center for internally displaced persons, most of whom are Christians, in Dawodiya, Iraq, April 10, 2016.

Trump signs law to aid Christians in Iraq, Syria

Dec 11, 2018

By Christine Rousselle

President Donald Trump signed into law Tuesday the Iraq and Syria Genocide Relief and Accountability Act, which seeks to ensure... Read more

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, DC, Red Wednesday.

‘We must not hide from suffering,’ Iraqi archbishop says on Red Wednesday

Nov 29, 2018

By Courtney Mares

In Washington’s Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Catholics and Church leaders from four continents gathered Wednesday... Read more

Rep. Jeff Fortenberry.

Congressman asks House to protect religious minorities in Iraq

Oct 23, 2018

By Courtney Mares

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives Oct. 5 a security resolution intended to protect religious minorities... Read more

The dome of a church profained by IS in the Christian city of Qaraqoosh, Nov. 2016.

USAID and Knights of Columbus in agreement to help Mid East Christians

Oct 12, 2018

The joint effort was agreed in a memorandum of understanding announced Oct. 12 and will begin in Iraq, before being... Read more

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry holds a fragment of an Iraqi Christian altar destroyed by the Islamic State. Courtesy photo

Congressman: Security, solidarity, and subsidiarity needed to rebuild Iraqi villages

Aug 22, 2018

By Courtney Mares

Christian and Yazidi communities in northern Iraq need security as they rebuild, said Congressman Jeff Fortenberry after a trip to... Read more

Religious sister from Iraq again denied entry to UK

Jun 25, 2018

Sister Ban Madleen, a Dominican sister from Iraq who had to flee ISIS, has once again been denied entry to... Read more

Syrian refugees in the Bekaa valley in Lebanon.

Papal agency raises funds to help Christians remain in the Middle East

May 25, 2018

The Catholic Near East Welfare Association in Canada is launching a fundraising campaign to help Christians in the Middle East... Read more

Participants in the "Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus and Mother of the Church" event in Qaraqosh, Iraq.  Courtesy photo.

Iraq gathering aimed to honor Mary, empower women

May 2, 2018

By Elise Harris

Iraqi women rebuilding their lives after ISIS occupation were invited to a three-day gathering aimed, according to organizers, at empowering... Read more

A woman at Sharia Al Haman Hope Refugee Camp in Duhok, Iraq, March 28, 2015.

Knights of Columbus announce Easter pledge to aid persecuted Christians

Mar 28, 2018

In light of Holy Week, the Knights of Columbus announced that it will be donating more than $1 million to... Read more

A newborn child rescued from a sentence of death in northern Iraq.

Iraqi newborn rescued from near death, aid group reports

Jan 24, 2018

A newborn baby was sentenced to death after Iraqi tribal leaders discovered it had been conceived in rape committed by... Read more

Child refugees in Iraq.

Knights of Columbus praise increased US aid for persecuted Iraqis

Jan 17, 2018

The federal government has pledged $55 million in aid for religious and ethnic groups that have faced ISIS persecution in... Read more

Children at Sharia Al Haman Hope Refugee Camp in Duhok, Iraq on March 28, 2015.

Dominican sisters help educate Iraqi children returning home

Jan 10, 2018

When Iraqi residents fled their homes during the Islamic State invasion, they left behind their houses, neighbors, and day-to-day lives.  Read more

Bashar Warda, Chaldean Archbishop of Erbil, who said the Nov. 28, 2017 Mass in Washington, D.C.

Memorial Mass held in US for victims of Islamic State

Nov 28, 2017

In observance of a week promoting awareness of Christians persecuted internationally, the Chaldean Archbishop of Erbil offered a Mass in... Read more