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Chaldean News Update

12.05.07 | Optimus | In Uncategorized

Syria: desperate Iraqi Christians resort to prostitution

Some Iraqi Christian women have turned to prostitution in order to survive in Syria, Bishop Antoine Audo SJ told a press conference in London today. ;

Bishop Audo, who based in Aleppo, has responsibility for Chaldean Catholics in Syria. ; Between 40,000 - 50,000 Chaldeans have arrived in the country as a result of the bombings, murders, kidnappings and general instability in Iraq. ;Some were forced out of their homes by Islamic fundamentalists.

[via Independent Catholic News]

Detroit-area Chaldean Catholics rejoice as patriarch is made cardinal

DETROIT (CNS) — Detroit-area Chaldean Catholics expressed pride that Cardinal Emmanuel-Karim Delly, 80, is the first Chaldean patriarch in history to be in the College of Cardinals of the Catholic Church.

About 150 Chaldeans from the Detroit area traveled to Rome for the Nov. 24 consistory.

[via Catholic News Service]

Metro Detroit Chaldeans traveling to Italy for historic cardinal …

More than 100 Chaldeans from metro Detroit will travel to Italy today to witness the first-ever inauguration of a Chaldean as a cardinal on Saturday.

Patriarch Cardinal-designate Mar Emmanuel III Delly, the current patriarch of Babylon for the Chaldeans and a resident of Baghdad along with 22 others from around the world will accept their red hats to go along with their ceremonial robes and join the College of Cardinals, becoming the Pope’s advisors and the voters for the next papal election. The church’s number of cardinals will total 202.

[via Detroit Free Press]

San Diego becoming home, and workplace, for Iraqi refugees

San Diego has become home to a significant portion of the 2,058 Iraqi refugees resettled in the United States since February, when the country began accepting those displaced by the upheaval in Iraq.

Most of the 403 Iraqi refugees resettled in California during first nine months of the year have moved to the San Diego area, according to Elizabeth Campbell, director of Refugee Council USA.

[via Medill Reports]

Chaldean Catholics Lead Boycott of Miller

In metropolitan Detroit, Chaldean Catholics own about 2,000 party stores — about 90 percent of the total of the area’s independent neighborhood convenience stores that sell food and other items, including alcoholic beverages.

Bishop Ibrahim worked with Chaldean ethnic and business groups to boycott Miller products after the company’s logo appeared on a poster for a Sept. 30 San Francisco street fair that mocked Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of “The Last Supper” and had what critics described as a sadomasochistic theme.

[via Catholic Online]

Chaldean Americans lobby with one voice

FARMINGTON HILLS — Martin Manna expects the November release of an economic report to measure the economic contributions Chaldean Americans make in the Detroit area.

“We’ve been trying to have more of a voice,” said Manna, executive director of the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce. “We have an active business community that has a tremendous impact in Southeast Michigan.” The chamber commissioned the United Way and Walsh College to conduct the survey, which will provide an accurate examination of the Chaldean community, its characteristics and economic impact, Manna said.

[via DetNews.com]

Chaldean News

10.13.07 | Optimus | In Uncategorized

Store owner boycotts Miller over ad

Setto said he nearly went out of his mind when he saw the beer manufacturer’s logo on a poster depicting the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with Jesus and his disciples posed as scantily dressed homosexuals.

“This is not against homosexuals. This is about the Last Supper, the poster where 13 half-naked people have sex objects in their hands, dirty sex objects and beer and the guys are pretending to be Jesus and his disciples, wearing face masks and all that,” Setto said.

[via Oakland Press]

Save Aramaean Christianity in Iraq! Letter to Pres. Talabani …

In earlier articles, reports and interviews, we focalized on the Aramaean Identity of the totality of the non-Kurdish and non-Turkmen populations of Mesopotamia, a country that has been fallaciously baptized as Iraq by the British colonials, only to be more securely plunged into an incredible bloodshed ever since the collapse of the Ottoman rule.

Here, we publish a valuable historical document that pertains to the current, dramatic situation of the Aramaeans who have been left alive in the Hell of Colonial Iraq, as Paradisiacal Mesopotamia turned out to regrettably be. It is the letter sent to the Iraqi President Calal Talabani, Premier Nuri Kamel al-Maliki. and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Hoshyar Zebari, by the Aram-Naharaim Organisation, the Aramaic Democratic Organisation (ArDO), and the three archbishops of the West -Aramean Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch in Iraq, namely Mgr. Saverius Jamil Hawa, Metropolitan of Baghdad and Basra Archdiocese, Mgr. Gregorius Saliba Shamoun, Metropolitan of Mosul Archdiocese and environs, and Mgr. Timotheos Mousa Al- Shamani, Metropolitan of Mor Matta Archdiocese.

[via American Chronicle]

Iraqi Christians Forced to Leave

BAGHDAD — Nabil Comanny and his family endured the dead bodies in the streets, the roaming kidnap gangs and the continuing power failures.

The Christian family stayed in their southern Dora neighborhood after their Muslim neighbors fled the daily fighting between Sunnis and Shi’ites.

[via AINA]

Carl Levin: Levin Applauds Senate Passage of Iraqi Refugee Bill

September 28, 2007 — WASHINGTON — The Senate last night approved bipartisan legislation to help govern U.S. response to the Iraqi refugee crisis, which has displaced millions of Iraqis inside of Iraq and in neighboring countries. The bill, offered by Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) along with Sens. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), would establish a refugee processing program for Iraqis associated with the U.S. government and religious minorities, create a special immigrant status for Iraqis who have worked for the U.S. government, and permit Iraqis, whose application was denied because conditions in Iraq had changed after Saddam Husseins government fell, to reapply for asylum. The Senate approved the measure as an amendment to the Department of Defense authorization bill.

Refugee processing for Iraqis associated with the U.S. government. The bill requires the Secretary of State to establish a refugee processing program in Iraq and other countries in the region for Iraqis threatened because of their association with the U.S. government. These groups include Iraqis who were or are employed by or worked for the United States Government in Iraq; Iraqis who were or are employed in Iraq by a media or nongovernmental organization headquartered in the United States or an organization closely associated with the United States mission in Iraq that has received United States Government funding through an official and documented contract, award, grant, or cooperative agreement; and Iraqis who are members of a religious or minority community with close family members in the United States.

[via All American Patriots (press release)]

Iraq Through Iraqi Kurdistan

This speech — Iraq Through Iraqi Kurdistan — was presented by Stafford Clarry, a Hilo resident and Humanitarian Affairs Advisor, on Sept. 6, 2007, at the University of Hawaii-Hilo. Mr. Clarry, who served in Iraqi Kurdistan since 1991, is the American with the longest continuous service in Iraq.

Let me begin to try to help you understand more about what is happening in Iraq by understanding what is happening, and not happening, in one part of Iraq, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, often referred to as Iraqi Kurdistan or just plain Kurdistan. This is not about understanding everything there is to understand of course, but to understand a bit more about Iraq, certainly more about the Kurdistan Region.

[via Hawaii Reporter]

More of Arab descent in state Statewide

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[via Detroit Free Press]

Chaldean News: Warren, Metro Detroit, Turkey, and the Middle East

09.23.07 | Optimus | In Uncategorized

Warren mayor interviewed by French media on coming Iraqi immigrants

A French journalist interviewed Steenbergh this morning in Warren for a story about Iraqi immigrants coming to Warren.

In July, Steenbergh criticized a plan to bring as many as 15,000 Iraqi refugees to metro Detroit, where he said the sluggish economy and lack of jobs would lead to problems for Warren residents.

[via Detroit Free Press]

Dinner honors Arab community

It was a Who’s Who of Metro Detroit’s large Arab community when the Arab American and Chaldean Council presented its 28th annual Civic and Humanitarian Awards Gala on Sept 8.

Ford Motor Co. was the event’s sponsor, and Gov. Jennifer Granholm sat on the dais. Her Royal Highness Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein of Dubai received an award but was unable to attend because she is pregnant. She gave remarks via a video and sent a representative to accept her award. More than 1,300 supporters paid a minimum of $150 each to attend the bash at the large ballroom inside the Detroit Marriott Renaissance.

[via DetNews.com]

Iraqi Religious Violence Spiking: Khody Akhavi

Despite the addition of 30,000 US troops to enhance security in the country, the freedom of average Iraqis to practice their religions deteriorated sharply during the past year, according to a report released Friday by the US State Department.

The ninth “Annual Report on International Religious Freedom,” which covers 198 countries, described continued violence targeting people of specific faiths in Iraq, and largely blamed the ongoing insurgency, as well as “conservative and extremist Islamic elements,” for harming the ability of religious believers to practice their faith.

[via Antiwar.com]

Of walls and watermelons: The city of Diyarbakr

Thirstily sucking up the waters of the mighty Dicle (Tigris), which flows past the city in long, lazy loops, and fertilized with the droppings of countless pigeons, Diyarbakrs watermelons achieve a prodigious size. Indeed in Ottoman times they were reputed to have reached such girth that a sword was required to slice them. The Reverend Percy Badger, en route to proselytize amongst the Nestorian Christians of Hakkari in the mid-19th century, commented fruit is abundant, especially melons, which attain so large a size that two sometimes form a mule-load. Secondly, its monumental medieval walls, claimed in some quarters to be (along with Chinas Great Wall) one of only two man-made structures visible from space.

You may be skeptical about the veracity of the above, but Diyarbakr definitely has a vibrant Middle Eastern atmosphere — rivaled (in Turkey) only by Urfa. Situated astride a branch of the ancient silk route, at the highest navigable point of the Tigris, it has a strategic and commercial importance stretching back millennia. The Hurrians, Assyrians, Urartians, Persians and Alexander the Greats Macedonians were all here, though the origins of todays city date back to the Roman era. Legionary troops, campaigning on the eastern frontier of their vast empire, built a fort as protection against their arch rivals, the (Persian) Parthians. The classic layout of this fort, with its outer walls punctured by gates to the north, south, east and west and internal grid-plan streets, has been retained to this day — making exploration of the warren of cobbled lanes within the walls surprisingly easy.

[via Today’s Zaman]

Iraqi Christians greet Muslims before Ramadan

We need signs of dialogue in Iraq, otherwise, all is lost. ; This is what the Chaldean Archbishop of Kirkuk, Msgr. Louis Sako maintains, as he explains his initiative to AsiaNews ; which invites the Christian faithful of his diocese to unite themselves in prayer to their Muslim brothers in Iraq, during Ramadan, Islams holy month.

The prelate who yesterday issued a copy of his greetings in Arabic ahead of the holy month to local media refers that the diocese has published a calendar of Ramadan rites and has distributed it to over 3 thousand families in the city. ; He is also bent on organising a dinner for the citys religious leaders.

[via Spero News]

Exclusive: Islam: No Compulsion in Religion?

Quick Links “24″ FSM Research - Illegal Aliens and our National Security Donate - It’s fast and easy! Latest FSM Poll Are College Students at Risk in The War on Terror? FSM Blog School Bus Safety - FSM on FOXNews Must Reads About FSM Enfactlopedia Gotta Know! 2006 Voters Guide Products Contact Congressional Rep. ; ;

Exclusive: Islam: No Compulsion in Religion?

[via Family Security Matters]

Chaldean American conference promotes business opportunities

The conference will discuss franchising opportunities, offer tips on becoming business owners, discuss investment opportunities and offer panel discussions by area business leaders.

The event begins with lunch and registration at 11:30 a.m., followed by a presentation by Joe Reid, chairman & CEO of Capitol Bancorp.

[via Detroit Free Press]

Numbers of Iraqi refugees to US fall far shorter than anticipated

WASHINGTON, Aug 31 (KUNA) — The US has so far welcomed as little as 190 Iraqi refugees this year, a number that fell far shorter than the Administration had previously declared, with both relief agencies and the Bush Administration pointing to bureaucratic red tape as one of the main - but not the only - obstacles.

Offering no clear policy on the number of Iraqi refugees it wants to bring to the US, the Bush Administration has over the past year given different numbers of Iraqis expected to resettle in the US.

[via Indian Muslims]

Iraqi nears American dream

HARLINGEN An Iraqi Christian who escaped persecution three years ago and used smugglers to reach the United States was granted asylum Wednesday making him one of just a few thousand Iraqi refugees allowed to resettle in this country.

“I only asked you for your mercy,” Aamr Bahnan Boles, 26, told an immigration judge in Harlingen. “And I thank you very much.”

[via San Antonio Express]

Chaldeans and other minorities: ongoing persecution and ethnic cleansing in Iraq

09.09.07 | Optimus | In Uncategorized

Iraq’s Endangered Minorities

Recent bombings in Iraq’s Kurdish area nearly annihilated two Yazidi villages, killing hundreds of this ancient angel-revering, Indo-European religious group. The single deadliest atrocity of the Iraq conflict, it was also the latest demonstration that Iraq’s non-Muslims are in danger of extinction.

Sixty years ago, Iraq’s flourishing Jewish population, a third of Baghdad, fled in the wake of coordinated bombings and violence against them. Today, a handful of Jews remain. Unless Washington acts, the same fate awaits Iraq’s million or so Christians and other minorities. They are not simply caught in the crossfire of a Muslim power struggle; they are being targeted in a ruthless cleansing campaign by Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish militants.

[via Washington Post]

Northern diocese, from persecution; hope

Asia News IRAQ Northern diocese, from persecution; hope IRAQ CHURCH CHALDEAN PRIEST BISHOP PERSECUTION 22 Chaldean bishops and priests from Northern Iraq completed their spiritual exercises yesterday in Koman. Prayers and reflection on the role of the priest hope amidst persecution. Archbishop of Kirkuk: our courageous priests dream of a strong Church which denounces injustice and contributes to reconciliation.

[via AsiaNews.it]

Religious and Ethnic Persecution Continues in Iraq

If the targeted persecution and deadly violence against Christians continues in Iraq, it may be the end of the presence of this ancient people who have inhabited that land for more than 6,000 years. That is the message the Chaldean Assyrian Syriac Council of America (CASCA) is voicing throughout the country and topic of discussion at the first of two hearings with the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).

As the bloodshed continues, witnesses gave dramatic first-hand accounts of life and deteriorating conditions for the Christian Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac people in war-torn Iraq during the hearing on July 25.

[via AINA]

Threats to Iraq’s Communities: Assyrians Testify Before the US Commission on International Religious Freedom

(AINA) — The persecution of Christians and other non-Muslim minorities in Iraq has reached a critical mass and finally, Washington is taking notice. On July 25, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) conducted a hearing to gather information regarding the volatile situation facing the ancient communities of Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac Christians, Sabaean Mandaeans and Yazidis.

Five panelists delivered emotional accounts of struggles to survive in Iraq, including three Assyrian Chaldean, the Rev. Canon Andrew White of St George’s Anglican Church in Baghdad, and a Sabaean Mandaean physician.

[via AINA]