International community 'should not intervene in Iraq' - The Tablet

17 June 2014 12:39 by Abigail Frymann

The international community should not intervene in efforts to halt the insurgency by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) militia who have seized control of a number of cities, the Latin-rite archbishop of Baghdad said.

Archbishop Jean Sleiman said that Iraqi leaders urgently needed to work together to halt the progress of ISIS.

“In responding to this crisis, the international community should think of the common good, not their own interests. They should think of peace,” he told the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need.

He said political “consensus” within Iraq was critical to overcome the extremists who have rapidly gained control of key cities including Tal Afar and Mosul, the country’s second city, traditionally a Christian heartland. Mosul is now all but empty of Christians.

“ISIS needs to be stopped … and it needs the Iraqi leaders to work together to stop it. That is more important than getting the international community involved.”

He added: “I hope Iraqi leaders will find a consensus about how to tackle this situation or there will be a tragic outcome.”

But he added that he did now know whether the military would be strong enough to resist ISIS. “It is a possibility that the terrorists will succeed but we don’t know.”

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