Patriarch Mar Awa III, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East in Iraq and the World, received Ammar Al-Hakim, leader of the National Wisdom Movement, and his accompanying delegation at the Patriarchal Residence in Erbil on Monday, September 7, 2026. The meeting focused primarily on the return of Christians to their original areas and the need to create the necessary conditions to ensure a safe and stable life for them in their homeland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The meeting addressed the role of Christians and other religious and ethnic communities in building Iraq, emphasizing that Iraq’s diversity represents a substantive value and a fundamental contribution to state-building, rather than merely a numerical presence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The two sides discussed ways to encourage Christians to return to their original areas, in light of the call issued by Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaydi, as well as the importance of providing the security, social, and essential services needed to ensure the stability of returnees and the continuation of their presence in their historic areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Patriarch Mar Awa III reaffirmed the historic roots of the Assyrian Church of the East in Iraq, stressing the role of Assyrians and Chaldeans in strengthening Iraq’s diverse national and religious fabric.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The meeting also underscored the importance of the role of church leaders from different denominations in supporting the return of Christians and consolidating their presence in their historic homeland. It further highlighted the role of members of Iraq’s various communities living abroad in conveying the image, history, and diversity of Iraq and contributing to its support as ambassadors of their country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The meeting was attended by Archbishop Mar Bashar Warda, Dr. James Hasdo, Mr. Emil Estefan, Mr. Khalid Jamal, as well as Father Ishai Dawood and Father Martin Nabil.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Patriarch Mar Awa III, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East in Iraq and the World, received Ammar Al-Hakim, leader of the National Wisdom Movement, and his accompanying delegation at the Patriarchal Residence in Erbil on Monday, September 7, 2026. The meeting focused primarily on the return of Christians to their original areas and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":37615,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"jnews_post_split":[],"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n