Iraqi prime minister calls return of Christians a national priority

Iraq’s prime minister called the return of Christian families a national priority, pledging government assistance to encourage those living abroad to return, according to recent reports.

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced the effort during a July meeting in Baghdad with Chaldean Patriarch Paul III Nona, according to The Catholic Weekly. 

“The return of Christians who were forced to leave the country due to the difficult circumstances Iraq endured is a national and government priority,” al-Zaidi said according to the outlet.

Al-Zaidi also pledged government support for Christian families moving back to Iraq.

“The government remains fully committed to consolidating stability and ensuring security, justice, and sustainable civil peace for all citizens,” al-Zaidi said according to the outlet. “We express the government’s complete readiness to provide all necessary facilities and support to encourage and assist the return of Christian families, which includes ensuring their immediate eligibility and inclusion in the country’s ongoing one million-plot residential land project.”

Iraq was home to approximately 1.5 million Christians in 2000, but fewer than 300,000 remain, Aid to the Church in Need, a Catholic charity, reported. 

In calling for their return, al-Zaidi also emphasized the importance of Christians to Iraq, according to The Catholic Weekly.

“Iraq’s true strength lies in its national, religious, and cultural diversity, and in the unity, integration, and social cohesion of its people,” he said. “Christians are an active component, an essential part of Iraqi society, and a key partner in building the state and shaping Iraq’s history and future.”

Chaldean Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil, who also attended the July meeting, told the charity that the prime minister also encouraged Iraqi Christian businesspeople living abroad to return and invest in the country.

“The Prime Minister has lived among Christians, so he knows them very well,” Archbishop Warda said. “He said he would love to see Christians working in health and education because he trusts them and knows the quality of the education and the healthcare they provide. He told us to count on him for whatever we need, and that is very encouraging.”

Iraq’s Catholic bishops met Aug. 28 for the first time in five years. In an X post, Archbishop Warda said the gathering reflected a shared commitment to “strengthening the Christian presence, deepening ecclesial communion, and bearing a credible witness of faith to the faithful.”