PHOTOS: Armenians in the Kurdistan Region celebrate Christmas

Mustafa Shilani 2021/01/06 20:58

An Armenian priest leads a Christmas mass at a church in the Kurdistan Region's province of Duhok, Jan. 6, 2021. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)

Kurdistan Armenian New Year Christians Christmas Coexistence Duhok Kurdistan

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Armenians in the autonomous Kurdistan Region on Wednesday celebrated the annual holiday marking the birth of Jesus Christ, which fell on Wednesday according to the Armenian Apostolic Church calendar.

Dawood Mar Nisan, head of the administrative committee of Armenians in Duhok’s Zakho district, told Kurdistan 24 that this year's Christmas ceremonies "were limited to holding religious rituals in Armenian churches due to the health conditions of the coronavirus pandemic."

He pointed out that "the number of Armenians in the Kurdistan Region is about 3 thousand people and 850 to 900 of them live in the Zakho district of Dohuk province."

Speaking to Kurdistan 24, a participant in the ceremony congratulated Christians both locally and internationally and went on to thank Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) authorities for providing a secure and peaceful atmosphere for multiple faiths represented in the region.

Editing by John J. Catherine Photo: Kurdistan 24

Photo: Kurdistan 24