CPTnet
November 28, 2003
IRAQ: CPT documents sacking of church by U.S. Forces

By Allan Slater and Matt Chandler

On Saturday, November 22, 2003, CPTers Allan Slater and Matt Chandler
accompanied an Iraqi human rights worker to document damage caused by U.S.
forces at Holy Mary Orthodox Egyptian Coptic Church in July. The church was
built in 1668 and is located Baghdad's Old City. The following is a
(paraphrased and condensed) account of the raid from the priest's
assistant, an Egyptian national.

"Old Baghdad was a very dangerous place as the recent war ended this
spring . . . Looters were everywhere, so four Egyptian men and I were
guarding the church . . .

"There was a lot of shooting around the church on the evening of July 26,
2003 as many looters and gangs are centered in our area. But none of the
gunfire was coming from the church. Soldiers from U.S. Forces were
nevertheless checking everywhere. They knocked on the door of the church
that night, and I let them in. The soldiers immediately rushed in and
spread throughout the church. They grabbed and handcuffed all five of us
guards, detaining us together while they searched the entire grounds.

"Some of the soldiers desecrated the altar by walking all over it with their
boots, while others hammered on the brick walls of the church, damaging the
bricks.

"Yet another group of soldiers broke down the doors to several church
offices. In one of the offices they pried open a small locked cabinet.
They confiscated the passports belonging to the five of us, as well as 4.15
million Iraqi Dinars [$2,075 U.S. ] and $5,100 U.S. of church money that
was stored there. The money was being saved to buy books for the church
library and for the future construction of a new church. [Most Iraqis do
not keep valuables in banks due to the current instability].

"The soldiers then detained us for one night at a U.S. base in central
Baghdad, then another night at a U.S. base near al-Shaab stadium, where they
questioned us one by one. After holding us at the Baghdad International
Airport for two nights, U.S. soldiers took one of us to Abu Ghraib and the
other four of us. to al-Rasafah prison. They released those of us at
al-Rasafah after three weeks. The fifth man was freed two days later,
with the help of an Iraqi lawyer.

"I have spent three months now trying to get our property back from the U.S.
Forces, but neither the money nor the passports have yet been returned.
In this process, U.S. Military representatives sent me to eight different
military bases, some of them several times each. I have done all they asked
me to do, but I have made no progress at all. When they told me for the
seventh time, "Come back in two or three weeks" two weeks ago, I became
totally frustrated. I went to The Patriotic Association for Defense of
Human Rights in Iraq because I heard they might be able to help us get our
property back.

"The church has lost all of its savings, and we have lost our irreplaceable
documents--not only our current passports, but also our old ones, which
prove our initial acquisition of visas to Iraq. I hope you [CPT] will tell
this story to Christians around the world." ----------------- While visiting
the church, Slater and Chandler observed the damaged walls, split
doorframes, ruined door locks, and the broken cabinet doors.