Chaldean archbishop kidnapped in Iraq found dead: church

Yahoo News ^ | March 13, 2008

[NYer]

A Chaldean Catholic archbishop kidnapped last month in northern Iraq has been found dead, the information service of the Italian Catholic Church said Thursday.

The body of Paulos Faraj Rahho, the archbishop of Mosul, was found near the northern city, the Church said, quoting the auxiliary archbishop of Baghdad, Shlemon Warduni.

"We recovered his body near Mosul," Warduni said, according to the Church's news agency SIR. "The kidnappers had buried him."

Rahho was kidnapped on February 29 in Mosul after a deadly shootout in which three of his companions were killed.

Iraqi forces in Mosul had fanned out to search for Rahho, whose abduction was branded as "atrocious" by Pope Benedict XVI.

Rahho was the latest in a long line of Chaldean clerics to be abducted in Iraq since the US-led invasion in March 2003. Two priests were kidnapped in the city in October, and last June a priest and three deacons were attacked in front of their church.

Iraq's Christians, with the Chaldean sect by far the largest community, were said to number as many as 800,000 before the 2003 invasion.

Associated with the "Crusader" invaders and regarded as well-off, they are now victims of sectarian cleansing, killings and kidnappings at the hands of both Sunni and Shiite Islamists, as well as criminal gangs.

[Biggirl]

The Muslims are simply are doing what the moon-rock god in Mecca, the playbook, the Koran, and the their prophet Muhammed tells them to do, lie if needed to the non-Muslims. The more time goes on, the more I see that Islam follows the devil in this respect.

[cake_crumb]

"But I really don't know as much as y'all do...I don't watch the news very much."

Good one!

[gracesdad]

“I thank God I got to experience all of this so that I could see how it really is instead of being filled with irrational, wide-brush hate.

Oh, wait...isn’t that exactly what these people are accusing every single Muslim of...?”

Well, that’s different. It’s OK to hate every single Muslim. Boy, you’re going to have to attend “re-education” camp when you return to the U.S.

[Allegra]

It also guarantees freedom of religion, freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom to own private property and a host of other things. You don't get it. We are NOT nation building. Writing their constitution FOR them is nation building. Iraqis are FREE. That was the POINT. One of the points.

I get to a point on these threads where I just have to ignore most of the comments.

One of my co-workers described me recently as "laid-back, lighthearted and easy going, but doesn't take crap from anyone and has no patience for ignorant people." LOL

Anyway, thank you for being some of the few who actually make sense.

[Allegra]

:-)

[cake_crumb]

I disagree. We needed staging areas. Diplomacy got them.

[cake_crumb]

"The author is MSM. In the author's mind, USA = EVIL"

Yep. It's no coincidence they're all "progressives".

[farmer18th]

Oh, wait...isn't that exactly what these people are accusing every single Muslim of...?

How many acts of Islamic terror since 9/11? Over 10,000? And you are accusing those who are warning others about Islam as guilty of broad-brush hate?

Get a life--and a mind.

[farmer18th]

I disagree. We needed staging areas. Diplomacy got them.

Then let's be honest and just call this the "War for Staging Areas," not "Operation Iraqi Freedom." It is a tremendous injustice to our fighting men NOT to let them know that Islam is the enemy.

[Allegra]

That's right...start slinging the insults when you can't win the argument. I'm so very impressed.

Perhaps it is not I who needs to get a life, hmmmmm?

In fact, I live a pretty interesting life. Yeah, I live it as opposed to watching it on TV.

Have a nice life....if you can get one.

[cake_crumb]

"Anyway, thank you for being some of the few who actually make sense."

No problem. I support the mission, unequivocally. I've studied terrorism for over thirty years and get into flame wars with the "nuke 'em all" crowd all the time.

[Girlene]

Here's another link, Chaldean archbishop kidnapped in Iraq found dead

....The body of Paulos Faraj Rahho, the archbishop of Mosul who was kidnapped on February 29, was found near the northern city, the Church said, quoting the auxiliary archbishop of Baghdad, Shlemon Warduni.

It was unclear if he died of natural causes or was killed.

The kidnappers had telephoned to inform the Baghdad prelate that Rahho, who was in poor health, had died and that they had buried him, the Church's news agency SIR reported.

"The kidnappers had told us already yesterday (Wednesday) that Monsignor Rahho was very ill, and yesterday afternoon they told us that he died. This morning, they telephoned us to say they had buried him," Warduni said, adding that the kidnappers indicated the location of the body.

"We still don't know whether he died from his poor health or was killed," Warduni said. "The kidnappers only told us that he was dead."

Rahho was kidnapped in Mosul after a deadly shootout in which three of his companions were killed.

Pope Benedict XVI reacted with "deep sadness" to the news of Rahho's death, a Vatican spokesman said.

"The most absurd and unjustified violence continues to afflict the Iraqi people and in particular the small Christian community whom the pope ... holds in his prayers ... in this time of deep sadness," Father Federico Lombardi said.

"This tragic event underscored once more and with more urgency the duty of all, and in particular of the international community, to bring peace to a country that has been so tormented," Lombardi said.....

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

Get a life--and a mind.

Disagreement is one thing, but telling a Freeper who is in Iraq and taking part in the struggle there to 'get a life' is pretty low, it seems to me.

[cake_crumb]

Don’t be lunatic and stop changing the argument. DIPLOMACY for staging areas and other support, WAR against TERRORISM. OPERATION Iraqi Freedom.

[trisham]

That was unkind.

[Nihil Obstat]

By the Cross with thee to stay,
there with thee to weep and pray,
is all I ask of thee to give.

[Allegra]

I've studied terrorism for over thirty years and get into flame wars with the "nuke 'em all" crowd all the time.

Yes, those and then there are the armchair generals and the Code Pink types we have skulking around among us. ;-)

[Traianus]

If as Catholic I commit suicide BOMBING in a MOSQUE AM I SINNING?

[Judith Anne]

Thank you for the link. I read elsewhere that the archbishop had a serious heart condition and needed daily medication for it. The lack of that probably contributed to his death (just my guess).

[farmer18th]

I thank God I got to experience all of this so that I could see how it really is instead of being filled with irrational, wide-brush hate. Followed by... start slinging the insults when you can't win the argument. I'm so very impressed.

You started the insulting by using the tired appelations of the hard left, by making reference to hate-speak.

So you're over there. Great. What are YOU teaching the Iraqis? Tolerance for their own spiritual and cultural poision? Providing the rah-rah chorus for neo-cons who think Islam and democracy can co-exist isn't doing the object of your attention any good. In World War II, we destroyed Fascism and Emperor-Worshiping Feudalism. Remember? We didn't replace a regime and then leave the disease in place.

When you call those of us who are correctly pointing out the nature and source of the problem "broad-brush haters," you are fair game for the loser comments.