Christian Emigration from Southern Iraq

The Council of Churches of Basra announced an increase in the emigration of Christians from southern Iraq.

According to statistics released by the Council of Churches of Basra, more than 7,000 Christian families lived in southern Iraq in the past, but according to current figures, the number of Christian families in southern Iraq has decreased to 350 households, indicating an increase in the emigration of Christian families.

According to published statistics, more than 80 percent of Christians from Basra, Nasiriya, Kut, and Amara have emigrated, and the reason for their emigration has been cited as weak rule of law, non-observance of rights, and treatment as third-class citizens.

In recent decades, the number of extremist Islamic groups in Iraq has increased, and with their emergence, attacks on Christians have also escalated, with a very large number of Christians killed by extremist Islamists. These radical groups consider Christian beliefs and activities to be contrary to Islam and believe they should be eliminated.

The extremist Islamist group views the current treatment of Christians as progress and believes that all non-Muslims in Iraq should be eliminated. It should be noted that in the attacks by extremist Islamist groups on Christians, “Paulos Faraj Rahho,” the Chaldean Patriarch, and many other priests in various churches were killed.

These attacks and the killing of Christians by extremist Islamist groups led to forced emigration of Christians to the Kurdistan region and outside the country, and these forced migrations also resulted in a change in Iraq’s population. Today, Iraqi Christians continue to witness a decrease in the number of Christian families.

According to published statistics, the Christian population of Iraq has declined from 4 percent in 1987 to 1 percent, and the main reasons for the decrease in their population in Iraq are security problems and the lack of suitable employment for Christians.