We have interviewed Lawin Zaxoyan for this blog, fermo!
Q: Please tell us about the Christian community in Zaxo(Zakho)!
Zaxo a city in bahdinan region Southern Kurdistan. A ancient city with a history of Jewish and Christian background. Today for instance the city still has a small Christian community. A community who does play a big role in the society. The larges Christian minority in Zaxo today are Armenians and Chaldeans. Before the 1915 genocide and the deportation of Armenians during the Ottoman empire the city did have a very small Armenian community living. The small Armenian community in Zaxo was growing with other Armenian survivors from the Ottoman empire that settled also in Zaxo. The others continued to move on to Christian villages near Zaxo and other cities out of Kurdistan to cities like Bagdad and Basra.
Assyrian and Chaldean are also part of the christian comminutiy in Zaxo but after many Armenians from the Ottoman empire who settled in Zaxo Armenians became the largest Christian community.
Q: How is the relations between the Assyrians, Armenians and Kurds in Zaxo(Zakho)?
Today Kurdish Muslims are the largest community in Zaxo. The relationship with the Christians has always been good. Muslim and Christian have been living peacefully side by side in the city.
Q: Can Christians in Zaxo(Zakho) practise their religion openly?
Of course a Christian in Zaxo can openly practice their religion. You have plenty of churches where they could go and pray peacefully.
Q: How many churches are there in Zaxo(Zakho) approximately?
We have four churches in Zaxo. The biggest church in Zaxo is a Armenian Apostolic Orthodox church its located in the middle of the city, two Catholic Chaldean Churches the last one a Assyrian church.
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