Chaldean Cardinal: Promised US aid for Iraq has yet to arrive

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The head of Iraq’s Chaldean Catholic Church expressed concern on Tuesday that promised US assistance for religious minorities in Iraq has yet to come, issuing an unusual public rebuke of the US on the same day Washington announced a new batch of aid.

Cardinal Louis Raphael I Sako’s comments came during a press briefing in the Vatican as Mark Green, USAID administrator, was in also in the Vatican for talks, and announced a near doubling of funding – to about $300 million – and spoke of on-the-ground results.

“There are promises, but the reality is that there's been nothing up to now,” Sako said quoted by the Associated Press when asked about the US aid. “Today, we need to help and encourage Christians to remain in place, help them to find work, repair their homes, give them a hope. Emptying these places is a mortal sin, truly.”

The Cardinal commended Hungary by contrast, stating the country had provided $5 million in direct assistance to repair Christian homes, schools, and churches in Iraq and Syria, rather than take refugees in.

Sako was also asked if his complaint about the missing US aid was directed at US Catholic charities or the US government.

“I am speaking about the policy of America,” he said. “Americans, they are very nice and very friendly as individuals, but the policy is wrong.”

He suggested that the US military operation on Iraq in 2003, which led to years of instability and culminated in the birth of the Islamic State (IS), was responsible for the exodus of Iraqi Christians from communities that have existed since the time of Jesus.

“We Christians of the Middle East, if we leave, we will have lost our identities, our tradition, our patrimony, which is very, very rich,” Sako said. “But America, up to now, hasn't done anything. But we hope.”

The Cardinal’s comment came as Green was starting his visit to the Vatican, and the US State Department said a new infusion of $178 million had been allocated to help religious minorities in Iraq.

Green has a previously scheduled meeting with Sako on Wednesday. Green is expected to discuss USAID’s work to help religious minorities in Iraq with Sako, including ongoing projects with the Chaldean church and Sako’s diocese, a USAID official told AP on condition of anonymity.

Green noted that US funds were being channeled through 36 local, 11 faith-based, and 27 international organizations to help preserve Iraqi culture, prevent future atrocities and help with economic recovery. Notably, Washington is working with the Catholic group Knights of Columbus to identify those in need.

The USAID official in a statement also mentioned that one concrete example of US funds at work was in the town of Bashiqa in Nineveh Province, where funds have helped repair homes and wells, financed medical units, and maximized security around schools to enable displaced families to return.

Editing by Nadia Riva