Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil, Iraq, made an urgent call to the British government to prevent persecuted Christians from dying out in their ancient homelands on Tuesday during a meeting with Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
The Archbishop, who also met Foreign Office Minister Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, also appealed to the UK to apply diplomatic pressure to the government of Iraq to improve security and end institutionalised discrimination against Christians and other minorities.
Later that day, at a meeting in the House of Commons, Archbishop Barda - addressing members of both Houses of Parliament - said UK engagement was vital if his people are to recover from “one of the darkest moments in our long history”.
The Archbishop’s visit, arranged by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, comes as the inquiry into the persecution of Christians, ordered by Mr Hunt, takes testimony from witnesses.
Archbishop Warda thanked Mr Hunt for conducting the review, saying he was “shocked and delighted” when he heard the news about the “unprecedented” initiative.
Christians in Iraq numbered more than 1.5 million before 2003 and latest reports say that, following the Daesh (ISIS) genocide in 2014-17, Christians are now down to well below 150,000.
Archbishop Warda said that, during their occupation of ancient Christian villages in the Nineveh plains, Daesh militants came close to destroying “the beating heart of our community”.
Archbishop Warda said: “Rebuilding infrastructure is urgently needed but the Government in Iraq has said it has no money. They have told us ‘You will have to rely on your friends’. But this surely should be the task of government.”
He said that, with most governments failing to help, his community had been largely reliant on support from Church organisations, praising ACN.
“The help of ACN and other charities – through prayers and generous gifts – have reminded us that we have not been forgotten. This help has made a huge impact.”
In a tweet following the meeting on Tuesday, Mr Hunt said it was good to discuss the support the UK is providing for minorities in Iraq.
“In Iraq Christian numbers have dropped from 1.5million before 2003 to below 120,000 today. Thousands were forced to flee after their horrendous persecution by Daesh. Good to discuss the support the UK is providing for minorities in Iraq with @BishopWarda today”
On Good Friday, Mr Hunt revealed that he had written 40 letters to persecuted Christians to mark Easter. The letters, sent to individual Christians as well as church groups and leaders in countries where Christians suffer the most serious persecution, express the government’s solidarity with those whom the foreign secretary described as “the world’s most persecuted group”.
In April, in a joint response Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster and Archbishop Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury said that while they welcome the review, they are “disappointed” that it is limited to the Foreign Office rather than including other Whitehall departments and bodies, in particular the Department for International Development (DFID) and the Department for International Trade along with the Cabinet Office, National Security Council and the Home Office.