Iraq’s Chaldean Patriarch, Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako, has expressed deep concern over the risk of a wider regional war as Iran strikes targets across Iraq. “War is not the solution,” he stressed, urging diplomacy to resolve problems.
The Patriarch fears further escalation could drag Iraq into a large-scale regional war, noting strikes have hit Gulf states, Turkey, and Azerbaijan. He’s also concerned about Iraq’s Christian communities, especially in the Nineveh Plains, where 50,000 Christians could be forced to flee.
Cardinal Sako has asked Christians to pray for peace and Muslim leaders to raise their voices for peace and fraternity, citing Pope Francis’ historic meeting with Grand Ayatollah Al-Sistani in 2021. Ayatollah Al-Sistani has also expressed fears of a widening war and called for an immediate end to the conflict.