After Daesh hell, suffering of Iraqi Christians continue at IMIS hands

The suffering of Christians in Iraq is still ongoing, especially with
the growing influence of the Iran-supported Iraqi Militias in Iraq and Syria
(IMIS) and its control over Christian-populated areas amid growing fears
regarding a process of demographic change in the Nineveh Plains.
Thirty years ago, Bartella's population was entirely Christian but demographic
changes over the decades left the town split between Christians and an ethnic
group known as Shabak, who are largely Shiites.
When Daesh overran the town and the rest of northern Iraq in 2014,
Bartella's entire population fled — since both communities were persecuted by
the radicals.
But two years after Bartella was liberated less than a third of its 3,800 Christian
families have come back.
Catholic priest Behnam Benoka claimed that the Christian community is
being pushed out by the Shabak. Most
remain afraid, amid reports of intimidation and harassment by the Shabak, who
dominate the Shiite militias [IMIS] now controlling the town.
One of the biggest points of contention in Bartella is the removal of
the Ninewa Protection Unit (NPU), a semi-autonomous police force made up mainly
of Christians that guarded the town until Daesh took over.
NPU fighters have fled to Kurdish areas and have not returned, which adds
to the reasons why Christian families have been wary of returning.
The Christian community in
northern Iraq’s Nineveh Plains complain of rights violations by the IMIS. The
majority of Christians have not been able to return to their areas despite the
defeat of Daesh due to threats and violations from the IMIS.
The population of Christians in
the Nineveh Plains before Daesh attacks was around 140,000 people. Following
the extremist group’s assault on the region, thousands of Christians were
forced to flee to Kurdistan.
Iraqi political analyst Firas
Elias told The Reference in an interview that after liberating the city from
the grip of Daesh and as the majority of the Christian population left their
houses, many of Christian properties got either seized or sold without
informing their owners.