Iraqi MP Joseph Saliwa: Iraqi Christians Want Autonomy; One Day, the Iraqis Will Demand the Return of the Jews

In a recent TV interview, Iraqi MP Joseph Saliwa said that the majority of Christian Iraqis had "reached the conviction that they must have autonomy." Speaking on the Iraqi Hona Baghdad TV channel on June 10, Saliwa further said that he believed that one day, the Iraqis would demand that the Jews, "who were driven out of this country by our forefathers, with their pure ISIS mentality," return to their lands and property.

Joseph Saliwa: "The majority [of Christian Iraqis] have reached the conviction that they must have autonomy."

Interviewer: "Autonomy?!"

Joseph Saliwa: "Yes."

Interviewer: "Is this even possible?"

Joseph Saliwa: "Why is it possible for the Shi'ites…"

Interviewer: "Because you are spread all over Iraq."

Joseph Saliwa: "No. There are areas that we claim in the Nineveh Plains, and when the circumstances are favorable…"

Interviewer: "That means the partitioning of the country."

Joseph Saliwa: "Absolutely not. That's strange. Let me tell you, the Iraqi people - the Shi'ites, the Sunnis, and the Kurds - are the real reason for the partitioning of Iraq. The religious and nationalist extremists have led those who do not entrench themselves in their sectarian and religious identity… These (moderates) have become convinced that they cannot live with them anymore."

Interviewer: "Isn't there any hope left for coexistence?"

Joseph Saliwa: "In principle, there definitely is. But can this hope remain only in my mind? The others should reach out to me too."

Interviewer: "The others have been very unjust toward you?"

Joseph Saliwa: "Very much so."

Interviewer: "The Shi'ites, for example…"

Joseph Saliwa: "Yes, very much so."

Interviewer: "The Shi'ites have been unjust towards the Christians?"

Joseph Saliwa: "Yes."

Interviewer: "The Shi'ites sacrificed their lives."

Joseph Saliwa: "Are you saying that the Christians did not?"

Interviewer: "[The Shi'ites] sacrificed their lives so that the churches in Mosul could be reopened."

Joseph Saliwa: "And the Assyrian Chaldeans have been sacrificing their lives for 1,400 years for the sake of the Shi'ites."

Interviewer: "(No)…"

Joseph Saliwa: "Of course. They did not do this as a favor, but as an act of humanity.

[…]

"The day will come when the Jews, who were driven out of this country by our forefathers, with their pure ISIS mentality…"

Interviewer: "An ISIS mentality?"

Joseph Saliwa: "Yes. A pure ISIS mentality. How was this any different from what ISIS has done in the Nineveh Plains to the Shi'ites, the Christians, the Kurds, the Shabak people, and so on? They forced [the Jews] out of this country, and they still yearn for their country. I believe that the day will come when the Iraqi people will demand that the Jews return to their lands and property…"

Interviewer: "Demand the return of the Jews?!"

Joseph Saliwa: "Yes."