Patriarch Sako: Christian presence remains threatened
Shafaq News/ The Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans, Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, welcomed German Archbishop Udo Markus Bentz of Paderborn and his accompanying delegation at the patriarchal headquarters in Baghdad, from January 30 to February 1.
According to a statement from the church received by Shafaq News, the meeting discussed the general situation in the region and focused on the difficulties faced by Iraqi Christians, “who have lost two-thirds of their population due to abductions, killings, and displacement by Islamic extremists.”
The Patriarch Sako announced, “Despite improvements in security, the Christian presence remains threatened due to sectarianism and political quotas, particularly the control of certain political entities over their resources, representation, and the restriction of employment to their own members.”
“What we aspire to is a civil state that treats everyone equally and justly. We hope that this dream will become a reality, not just the nice words we hear,” he added.
Last year, Sako stated that despite the "collective tragedy" of over 120,000 Christians being displaced a decade ago due to the ISIS offensive, and the widespread pessimism about the future in Iraq, along with the continued ideology of the terrorists, “this evil will not last,” referring to ISIS.
On July 8, 2023, President Abdul Latif Rashid issued a presidential decree revoking the presidential decree No. (147) of 2013, which had appointed Patriarch Louis Sako as the Patriarch of Babylon for the Chaldeans in Iraq and the world, and as the custodian of its endowments.
In April 2024, Sako announced his return to his headquarters in Baghdad following a personal invitation from Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani. Reflecting on his absence from the archbishopric in the capital, he described the past nine months as a period of “suffering, pain, and anxiety.”
