Firas Hamid, an investigating judge at the Karrada Court, revealed through Al-Qadaa newspaper that a gang consisting of seven brothers had been seizing the properties of Christian emigrants living abroad and subsequently selling them.
According to the judge, all members of the gang worked in real estate purchasing. Their plan to acquire these properties involved arranging meetings with the owners residing outside Iraq, where they would agree to purchase the properties. A property sale contract would then be prepared between them containing the phrase “the payment has not been received,” with the gang members promising to send the money through international transfers.
He continued: “When the gang returned to Iraq, its members would tamper with the sale contract by erasing the word ‘not,’ changing the statement to ‘the payment has been received in cash.’ They used certain tools to carry out the erasure and forgery, and then arranged for the transfer of ownership of the property.”
Security forces arrested the leader of the gang and another suspect after receiving complaints and confidential information regarding the gang’s activities in Baghdad’s Karrada district.
The gang was dismantled after its leader confessed, was convicted, and was sentenced to seven years in prison under Articles 295 and 298 of the Penal Code. The second suspect was sentenced to six years in prison.
All sales involving Christian-owned properties in the Karrada district were also suspended. In addition, courts issued judgments in absentia against the remaining fugitive gang members and ordered the seizure of their movable and immovable assets.
Killing and Displacement
The seizure of Christian-owned properties dates back to early 2004, when Christians were targeted before other communities in Iraq through killings, kidnappings, and forced displacement.
One example was a series of bombings targeting 70 churches between 2003 and 2012 in Baghdad. The attacks also targeted liquor stores, entertainment venues, fashion businesses, and beauty centers operated by Christians.
Violence and extremism escalated through threats against Christian women who did not cover their heads with the hijab. Many Christians were also assassinated, often after first being kidnapped and held for ransom. Even after the money, or “ransom,” was paid, the abducted person would be killed.
Later, gangs began pressuring and threatening Christians, forcing them to emigrate out of fear of being killed and to sell their properties and real estate at extremely low prices. During this period, property sale powers of attorney were forged without the owners’ knowledge.
Weak Rule of Law
The seizures affected residential neighborhoods whose populations were predominantly Christian, including Al-Sinaa Street, Karrada, and Al-Sibaa Street.
In this regard, Baghdad Provincial Council member Mohammed Al-Rubaie stated in 2016 that influential groups had seized approximately 70% of the homes belonging to Christians who had emigrated from Baghdad.
Among the most prominent stolen Christian-owned properties were Shops 906, 904, and 902 on Al-Sinaa Street in central Baghdad, due to their valuable commercial location.
Human rights activist Wael Jabbar told Raise Your Voice: “The entire problem of seizing Christian-owned properties is connected to corruption, abuse of official positions, and the weakness of the rule of law in the country.”
He stressed: “If the Iraqi judiciary were independent and operated without fear or pressure from influential political parties and groups, the violations against the rights and properties of members of the Christian community would not have escalated.”
Jabbar fears that the current efforts to provide justice to Christians may be nothing more than publicity because of the approaching parliamentary elections.
He believes that “in countries where corruption is widespread, the judicial system is often exploited to deliver justice that had previously been denied because of corruption, in order to create the impression among the public that corruption is being eliminated and thereby win elections.”
In 2015, the Ministry of Justice issued a directive to real estate registration departments and decentralized auditing authorities ordering them to suspend the use of powers of attorney in the sale of Christian-owned properties. It also called for violators to be held accountable and requested an assessment of the violations documented in this regard.
The inspector general of the Ministry of Justice at the time confirmed that, between 2003 and 2007, the seizure of Christian-owned properties occurred “easily and without any meaningful deterrent.” However, such cases began to decline gradually until 2010, after which they became difficult to carry out without the complicity of employees within real estate registration departments.
“I Am Always Afraid”
As the crises facing Christians continued, Tara Youssef, 49, who lives with her mother in Baghdad’s Zayouna district, concluded that what was happening “confirms that there is no longer any place for Christians in Iraq.”
She told Raise Your Voice: “What makes me feel afraid all the time is the weakness of the law’s role in protecting us.”
Tara remained with her elderly mother and refused to emigrate with her three children after their father was kidnapped and killed in 2007, so that she could care for her mother.
She added: “I had no other choice but to stay with my mother. She firmly refused to leave our home, and after her death, she wants to be buried beside my father.”
Tara asks: “What crime did we commit for our properties and rights to be seized in a country where our religion was once the most widespread religion in Iraq after Islam?”
