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WikiLeaks: 2010-02-28: 10BAGHDAD523: PRT Ninewa: Archbishop ...
VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB
DE RUEHGB #0523/01 0590859
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 280859Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6871
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 000523
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/I
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/27/2020
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINS KIRF IZ
SUBJECT: PRT NINEWA: ARCHBISHOP OF NINEWA DESCRIBES CLIMATE
OF FEAR
REF: BAGHDAD 0505
Classified By: Ninewa PRT Leader W. Patrick Murphy: Reasons 1.4 (b,d).
¶1. (U) This is a Ninewa Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT)
message.
¶2. (C) Summary. Ninewa's Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Emile
Nouna, meeting with USG officials for the first time since
his January installation, described how Christian families
are leaving Mosul after a recent spate of targeted killings.
The brutal Feb 23 home invasion and murder of a father and
his two sons, relatives of a Catholic priest, send a shock
wave of fear throughout the already skittish Christian
community. Citing an inadequate response on the part of the
GOI and local security authorities, he said the politically
motivated, though unknown, perpetrators, might wish to empty
Mosul of all Christians. He suggested that a USG statement
condemning the attacks could help reassure the Christian
community and spur Iraqi security forces into action. End
Summary.
¶3. (C) On February 24 PRT Ninewa team leader met with Dr.
Emile Fadel Nouna (PROTECT), the Chaldean Catholic Archbishop
of Mosul, to discuss recent attacks on Mosul,s beleaguered
Christian community (reftel). This was the PRT,s first
meeting with the prelate, who was installed in January after
receiving Pope Benedict,s consent in November 2009 but has
heretofore declined meeting with USG officials for fear of
reprisal. Our meeting took place in Archbishop Nouna's
northern Ninewa hometown of Al Qosh, an hour and a half north
of Mosul. He serves nearly 20,000 lay Catholics throughout
the greater Mosul diocese.
A SHOCK WAVE OF FEAR
--------------------
¶4. (C)Archbishop Nouna described in emotional terms a recent
spate of attacks against Christians in Mosul, during which
unknown assailants have assassinated at least eight people,
while kidnapping, beating, and raping several others. He
said the February 23 home invasion and murder of a father and
his two sons, relatives of a Catholic priest, had sent a
shock wave of fear throughout the Christian community.
Christians, he said, are being killed for their &identity8
and no longer feel safe anywhere, including in their homes.
Nouna, in exasperation, said he wished the Christians were
treated like other abused minorities in Ninewa and simply
subjected to extrajudicial arrest and temporary detention.
&Anything would be better than this violence,8 he added.
¶5. (C) Nouna described the attacks as well planned, executed
with military and intelligence-style precision. This, he
said, distinguished the attacks from Mosul,s notorious
criminal activity in which most victims are the target of
robbery and extortion. Archbishop Nouna said he does not
know who is behind the violence, but believes there is a
political objective. He said that attacks have been
intermittent since 2004, noting that perpetrators often take
advantage of election time to target Christians because Mosul
is a contested city and all sides try to influence the
Christian community. He concluded that the perpetrators
might have a nefarious plan &to empty Mosul of all
Christians.8
ON THE MOVE
-----------
¶6. (C) The Archbishop confirmed reports that Christians have
been moving out of Mosul, specifically citing some 40
families that have fled to Al Qosh alone. He added that
Christians are relocating primarily to Hamdaniyah and Tal
Kayf districts, but acknowledged that some are also
emigrating permanently outside of Iraq. Nouna admitted that
Qemigrating permanently outside of Iraq. Nouna admitted that
he also fears for his own safety, asking the PRT Team Leader
not to reveal his meeting with a USG official to GOI
authorities. (Note: In March 2008, unknown assailants
kidnapped and murdered Nouna,s predecessor, Chaldean
Archbishop Pauos Faraj Rahho. End Note.)
SEEKING HELP
------------
¶7. (C) The Archbishop said when he raises attacks on
Christians with Iraqi government and security officials, the
authorities always say they are willing to help but do
nothing in response. The TL noted deep USG interest in the
plight of Ninewa,s Christians and other minorities. In
response, the Archbishop suggested the USG could help by
pressuring local authorities to provide better security. He
also offered that it would be helpful if a senior USG
official publicly condemned the killings. When the TL asked
about possible programming for Ninewa,s Christian
communities, the Archbishop said his people only trust Church
institutions. The United States therefore could help by
supporting Christian educational and medical facilities,
which he noted are open to all denominations.
COMMENT: SEEKING SOLUTIONS
--------------------------
¶8. (C) Attacks on Mosul,s vulnerable and diminishing
Christian community are emerging as a critical backdrop to
the Iraqi national election in Ninewa. Security officials
are slowly starting to realize the scope of the problem
(UNHCR estimates that up to 2,000 individuals had fled Mosul
since the beginning of the year for temporary refuge in
nearby Christian enclaves), but are having difficulty
diverting resources and attention away from election-related
operations. Archbishop Nouna is a stoic, well-educated
leader (he has a Ph.D in theological anthropology) who is
pressing hard for an adequate security response to the
crisis. His own fear, however, is very telling: he declined
to meet us in Mosul, preferring instead the anonymous
sanctuary of a Catholic orphanage in remote Al Qosh, and his
hands visibly trembled as he recounted the attacks that have
had such a widespread impact on his community. End Comment.
HILL
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