Iraq’s Christians Turn to Militia for Protection
Two years ago, Mubarak Tuwaya fled when Islamic State militants made a triumphant charge through northern Iraq. Now he is back in his hometown, wearing the uniform of an Iraqi militia that is helping drive out the extremists—and aiming to secure a place for Christians and other local minorities in Iraq’s future. Capt. Tuwaya’s U.S.-trained […]Margherita Stancati and Ali A. Nabhan write for The Wall Street Journal:
Two years ago, Mubarak Tuwaya fled when Islamic State militants made a triumphant charge through northern Iraq.
Now he is back in his hometown, wearing the uniform of an Iraqi militia that is helping drive out the extremists—and aiming to secure a place for Christians and other local minorities in Iraq’s future.
Capt. Tuwaya’s U.S.-trained force is made up of about 500 troops and 300 unpaid volunteers, most of them Assyrian Christians from Hamdaniya, a district east of Mosul that is home to Qaraqosh, Iraq’s largest Christian town.
