2015-01-29 15:03:00

Church agencies give displaced Iraqis fuel, heaters for winter


Colorful blankets, shiny metal heaters and canisters of kerosene provided by Catholic Relief Services and Caritas filled a parking lot for collection by their new owners -- Yezidis displaced by Islamic State militants in search of badly needed provisions to combat the cold.

Thousands of Iraq's religious minorities were displaced by Islamic State militants during the summer. Left homeless and penniless, they now struggle in blustery snow and rain in the country's northern Kurdish region, where the majority shelter. "We're so grateful for this help from CRS and Caritas," said a slender Yezidi man named Salim, 34. Although Salim's family of 8, including his elderly mother, have received food parcels, until this distribution they lacked the means to stay warm in temperatures that often drop to freezing at night.

In August, Islamic State militants swooped down on the town of Sinjar, forcing thousands of people, mainly Yezidis, to escape up Mt. Sinjar with almost no food or water.  Salim  told CNS that, when the militants came, many young women were taken as slaves, while Yezidi men were forced to convert to Islam or be killed. His family managed to buy back a couple of their relatives for $800 piece, but several uncles have not been heard from since.

A delegation of U.S. Catholics -- led by Bishop Oscar Cantu of Las Cruces, New Mexico, in conjunction with Catholic Relief Services -- visited northern Iraq Jan. 16-20 to see international church agencies' work among Iraq's internally displaced Christians and other religious minorities.

"We are able to provide cash assistance because of private funds we have received from Catholics in the United States," said Kevin Hartigan, CRS regional director for Europe and the Middle East, who accompanied the group.

Hartigan visited Iraq in July and September, at the height of the Islamic State expulsions of Christians and other religious minorities.

"To see the change we've been able to bring about in some of these communities, particularly the shelter the people have for winter, is wonderful," he said.

"At the same time, I'm struck again by the enormity of the crisis and still-unmet need. We realize, along with our peer agencies and the rest of the humanitarian community, the need to continue to scale up and expand our capacities and work as well as helping the local church to build its capacity as we try to continue assistance with shelter, water and sanitation. More importantly, we look forward to supporting education for displaced children," Hartigan added. (CNS)








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