Assyrians continue to face both external pressures and internal divisions in Iraq, a senior member of the Assyrian Democratic Movement (ADM) said in a recent interview, emphasizing that the movement remains steadfast.
Donald Trump’s appointment of Assyrian-American Mark Savaya as Special Envoy to Iraq has led some to question whether it is connected to the sudden decision by Iran-aligned forces to reinstate the Nineveh Plain Protection Units (NPU).
Reports from Iraq claim that the Assyrian NPU force has been reinstated in the Nineveh Plain Region, effectively eliminating the role of Kataib Babiliyoun in the area.
While 19 candidates are competing for the five quota seats, Assyrian political parties are officially boycotting the elections in protest against the Iraqi government’s refusal to close a loophole that allows non-Assyrian groups to exploit their representation.
Washington has empowered an ethno-nationalist project that marginalizes the indigenous population and enforces the kind of oppression the U.S. claims to oppose," an Assyrian political figure has argued.
Increased security and better economic opportunities, among other factors, could more than quadruple the Assyrian population of the Tur Abdin Region, predicts the Assyrian analyst Ilhan Aydin.
The Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO) has objected to the Syrian government’s decision to exclude the Assyrian New Year and the Kurdish New Year from the country’s list of public holidays.
