A Christian family seen in a car with suitcases and mattresses tied on top, as they pass a checkpoint in the Qaraqosh area, about 30 kilometers (18 miles) east of Mosul, 360 kilometers (225 miles)...
(AP Photo/Emad Matti)
Thousands of Iraqi Christians living in the northern city of Mosul fled for their lives this past week, many leaving behind everything and, as one refugee put it, taking "only our souls".
At least 744 Christian families, or about 3,750 people, fled the city dubbed by US and Iraqi commanders as the last urban stronghold of Al-Qaeda for refuge with relatives in churches and at Christian centres in several towns and villages to the north and east of Mosul, according to the UK-based persecution watchdog ministry, Barnabas Fund. Some are even sleeping in their cars.
These displaced Iraqi Christians are said to be in desperate need of food, clothing, bedding, personal hygiene items and other basic necessities.
"We left everything behind us. We took only our souls," said Ni'ma Noail, 50, a civil servant who was forced by the violence to abandon his home in Mosul and is now living in a church, according to Barnabas Fund.
The US condemned the attacks on Tuesday attacks on Iraqis, including those against Christians in Mosul.
"The terrorist groups responsible for these attacks have shown again that their enemy is the Iraqi civilian population," the US embassy said in a statement. "They are seeking to create divisions among Iraqi communities and undermine the progress Iraq is making in building an inclusive, democratic and prosperous society."
Mosul, the capital of Ninewa province, is home to the second-largest Christian community in Iraq, after Baghdad. Many Christians from Baghdad and Basra have fled to the north for safety in recent years.
The original city of Mosul lies on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient biblical city of Nineveh on the east bank. Mosul contains the tombs of several Old Testament prophets, including Jonah and Nahum.
Last week's mass exodus from Mosul was triggered by the heightened violence targeted at Christians recently. More than a dozen Christians were murdered in the last two weeks alone, including three people within a 24 hour period last Tuesday.
