Stockholm -- Executive Director of the Assyrian Observatory for Human Rights Jamil Diarbakerli has released a new book titled "Still here, even if only on the map." The book, published by Omidoyo Publishing House, offers a comprehensive legal and political analysis of the current situation in the Middle east and the future of Christians, with an in-depth examination of their circumstances in...
(AINA) -- The territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria continues to erode under the weight of unresolved conflicts, competing regional agendas, and the persistent failure to protect indigenous peoples. Among those most affected by this reality is the Assyrian people, whose historic lands have been transformed into arenas for proxy struggles rather than safe regions that uphold dignity, rights, and...
As the sound of weapons grows louder and human stories fade, civilians in Syria -- especially Christians -- once again find themselves trapped between gunfire and the calculations of rival powers. This time, the crisis is unfolding in Gozarto (Jazira) in North and East Syria.
(AINA) -- Recent meetings between the American envoy, Dr. Barak, and regional actors in Erbil, namely Mr. Masoud Barzani and the leadership of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) represented by Mr. Mazloum Abdi, raise serious political and legal concerns.
Hah, Turkey -- In the stone-terraced fields of Hah, a centuries-old village in the historical region of Tur Abdin in southeastern Turkey, Benyamin Aydin tends his crops much as his ancestors once did. But farming is only part of his daily labor. The more fragile work happens in conversation, in memory, and in language.
Coinciding with the issuance of Decree No. 13 by President of the Syrian Arab Republic Ahmad al-Sharaa recognizing the rights of the Kurdish people in Syria, the Syriac Union Party in Syria (Gabo d'?uyodo Suryoyo, SUP) held a dialogue seminar on 17 January 2026.
(AINA) -- Iraq is currently at a critical juncture requiring the reinforcement of national sovereignty and the cohesion of state institutions. However, ongoing political and security developments in the north indicate a recurring pattern of policies that weaken the central government and exploit instability for political and economic gains, threatening Iraq's unity and the future of its indigenous...
We're in Baghdad. The year is 2004. A young Assyrian named Daniel* climbed into the back of a U.S. Humvee. His flak jacket hung loose, his helmet wobbled on his head. Unlike the soldiers he accompanied, his job wasn't to pull a trigger, it was to translate with precision. Daniel spoke Arabic and English with ease.
As part of ongoing efforts to assess the situation in Syria and to review the condition of Christians in Holeb (Aleppo), Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II carried out a series of visits in the city.
As part of their regular consultations aimed at discussing local and regional developments and strengthening cooperation in the interest of the Assyrian people, the Beth Nahrain Patriotic Union (Huyodo Bethnahrin Athroyo, HBA), Assyrian Democratic Movement (ZOWAA), Assyrian Patriotic Party (Atranaya), and Bet Nahrain Democratic Party (BNDP) held a joint meeting in Ankawa, Arba'ilo (Erbil), at the...
Baghdad -- With each passing year, the challenges threatening the Christian presence in Iraq continue to grow. A land that embraced Christianity in its earliest centuries has seen its Christian population subjected to persistent persecution and displacement. Since 2003, the number of Christians has fallen from more than 1.
North Iraq -- Reflecting the scientific and professional excellence of the Assyrian community, particularly in medicine, dentist Mariam Qardagh from Armota, Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), has earned a place among the world's top 100 impactful doctors, Class of 2026.
(AINA) -- Dr. Sophia Isaac is a scholar, educator, and cultural advocate whose own life reflects the very journey she studies. Born in Urmia, Iran, and brought to the United States as a child before the 1979 Iranian Revolution, she grew up navigating the space between two identities--Assyrian heritage and American life.
(AINA) -- For three decades the Assyrian International News Agency (AINA) has served as one of the most influential and authoritative voices documenting the life, heritage, and challenges of Assyrians and their Syriac-speaking Churches, both in the homeland and the diaspora. AINA is a privately funded, independent news agency founded by Peter Pnuel BetBasoo and Firas Jatou in 1995.
(AINA) -- The Assyrian Arts Institute (AAI) is an organization founded by Nora Betyousef Lacey in 2017 and claims to support Assyrian arts. AAI has sponsored a few events since its founding, including an Assyrian women's choir.
(AINA) -- On July 12 Iraqi president Abdul Latif Rashid repealed the decree recognizing the appointment of Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako as head of the Chaldean Catholic Church and which appointed him to the office of the waqf (وقف), the endowment which oversees all church property. The details of the events leading up to this action are exhaustively covered in this report by MEMRI.
(AINA) -- The territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria continues to erode under the weight of unresolved conflicts, competing regional agendas, and the persistent failure to protect indigenous peoples. Among those most affected by this reality is the Assyrian people, whose historic lands have been transformed into arenas for proxy struggles rather than safe regions that uphold dignity, rights, and...
(AINA) -- Recent meetings between the American envoy, Dr. Barak, and regional actors in Erbil, namely Mr. Masoud Barzani and the leadership of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) represented by Mr. Mazloum Abdi, raise serious political and legal concerns.
Three hundred and fifty years separate us from the last medieval Maronite epigraph, that of Our Lady of Ilige dated 1277 and the new inscription, dated 1628, at Mar Chalita of Ghosta, which marks the beginning of a renaissance that Lebanon was to experience under Ottoman rule.
Kochi, India -- As the Yuletide spirit fills the air, posters, cutouts and dolls of Santa Claus crop up everywhere, heralding the season of love and sharing. However, not many may know that Santa, the most popular symbol of Christmas, is inspired from and modelled after St Nicholas, a fourth-century bishop from Myra in ancient Turkey known for his generosity and secret gift-giving.