Catholic University To Open In Iraq Despite Looming ISIS Threat

lt;pgt;A Catholic university is to open in Erbil, in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, where Christians desperately cling on to their thousand-year heritage in the face of persecution by Islamic State (ISIS).lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;Vatican newspaper lt;emgt;L#039;Osservatore Romanolt;/emgt; lt;a href=quot;http://www.news.va/en/news/the-faithful-of-australia-work-to-open-a-catholicquot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;reportedlt;/agt; that courses at the Catholic University of Erbil, which is being funded by aid from Catholics in Australia, are due to begin in October. Thirty thousand square metres of land have been provided for the construction of the university by the Chaldean Catholic Church in Erbil.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, has become a refuge for Christians displaced from areas such as Mosul and the Nineveh Plains, who have been forced from their homes by the march of ISIS across the country. Some 125,000 Christians were absorbed into Erbil last summer after ISIS overran their towns, and at least 40,000 of those have since fled for neighbouring countries, according to British charity lt;a href=quot;http://www.acnuk.org/news.php/547/iraq-amp-united-kingdom-iraqi-bishop-tells-uk-quotwe-need-your-helpquotquot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;Aid to the Church in Needlt;/agt; (ACN).lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;ISIS now controls vast swathes of territory across Iraq, but has not come near Erbil due to the successful defence of the region by Kurdish Peshmerga forces. U.S. Secretary of Defence Ash Carter lt;a href=quot;http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/24/ash-carter-isis-defense-kurds-us-militaryquot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;arrivedlt;/agt; in Erbil on Friday for talks with Kurdish President Masoud Barzani on the ongoing operations against ISIS. The Islamists have so far been limited to minor lt;a href=quot;http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/04/17/Car-bomb-hits-near-U-S-consulate-in-Erbil.htmlquot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;car bombingslt;/agt; in the city.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;Archbishop Bashar Warda, the Chaldean Catholic archbishop of Erbil, met with Australian Catholic bishops and representatives of the Australian Catholic University in the past few days to work out the details of the aid package required for the final construction of the university.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;Warda told lt;a href=quot;https://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=25625quot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;reporterslt;/agt; in Australia that the founding of the university was quot;a way of fighting back against Daesh [ISIS] and saying we are not going to go away.quot;lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;He added that the university is designed to quot;embracequot; Christian and Yazidi young people persecuted by ISIS and other Islamist groups in the country, but would also welcome quot;Muslims who would learn side by side with Christians and Yazidis with an aim to shape a new and promising future for Iraq and the region.quot; The Yazidis are a lt;a href=quot;http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/07/who-yazidi-isis-iraq-religion-ethnicity-mountainsquot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;monotheistic religious minoritylt;/agt; concentrated in northern Iraq whom ISIS accuse of being devil-worshippers.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;Along with other religious minorities, Christians have been devastated by the rise of ISIS across Iraq and Syria. In towns taken over by the Islamists, Christians have been forced to renounce their faith and convert to Islam or face execution. ISIS has made numerous propaganda videos showing the execution of Christians, including an infamous video where 30 Coptic Christians were beheaded on a Libyan beach.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;When he visited the U.K. in February, Archbishop Warda begged the British government to support military action in Iraq, lt;a href=quot;http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-31303952quot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;sayinglt;/agt; in an address to parliament that airstrikes were quot;not enoughquot; to defeat ISIS. The Vatican has lt;a href=quot;http://www.cruxnow.com/church/2015/03/13/vatican-backs-military-force-to-stop-isis-genocide/quot; rel=quot;nofollowquot;gt;appealedlt;/agt; to the U.N. for an international force to stop the quot;genocidequot; of Christians in Iraq and Syria, with Pope Francis saying that the use of military force against ISIS is legitimate.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;John Pontifex, the head of press and information at ACN, says that the construction of a Catholic university is a signal that the indigenous Christian community has a long-term future in Iraq. quot;The idea would be that if they can create an education centre, they will enable Christians to play a full part in society, rather than feeling that this is a stop-gap before they move on to pastures new outside the country,quot; says Pontifex.lt;/pgt; lt;pgt;However, he adds that the situation for Christians in Iraq is so critical that Erbil represents a final refuge for the community. quot;It#039;s clear that having shifted lock, stock and barrel from Mosul and Nineveh to Erbil...this is their last stand, the last stand for Christians in Iraq. The hope is that the place will remain safe and so Christians can build a future,quot; he says.lt;/pgt;