AINA (Assyrian International News Agency)  | August 8, 2009 | Paul Batou

AINA) — The oppression of the Iraqi Christians started when Arabs occupied the land in the seventh century. Their method of wiping out Christianity from the region involved the implementation of a simple rule: either convert and follow the Islamic banner or pay heavy taxes (which many Christians could not afford) or face war.

Looking at more modern history, the first genocide of the 20th century began on April 24, 1915. By 1918, 2.65 million Christians including 750,000 Assyrians, 1.5 million Armenians, and 400,000 Greeks were killed by the Ottoman Empire and the Kurds. The Assyrians called this genocide “seyfo” which means sword. In 1933, the massacre of Simmele, in Northern Iraq, resulted in the death of 3000 Christians at the hands of the Iraqi Army. This was the first atrocity committed by the new Iraqi state under after gaining independence from the British in 1932. My village Tin, in Northern Iraq, shared a similar fate in 1961.

The American occupation in Iraq did not end the struggles of the native Christians. Under the watch of our Democratic government and the newly established Iraqi government, Christians continue to face persecution. Here is a list of some of the acts of violence committed as reported by the Assyrian International News Agency:

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