Patriarch Sako announces move to Kurdistan

The announcement follows the decision by Iraq's president, Abdul Latif Rashid, to revoke a 2013 decree recognising the Cardinal as Patriarch of the Chaldean Church.

Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako, Patriach of Babylonia of the Chaldeans, has publicly announced his intention to “retire from the Patriarchal See in Baghdad and move to a church, a mission, in one of the monasteries of Iraqi Kurdistan.”

His announcement, published in Arabic on the official website of the Chaldean Patriarchate on Saturday, 15 July, follows a decision made by the President of Iraq, Abdul Latif Rashid, to revoke a decree established in 2013 by the previous head of state, Jalal Talabani, recognising Cardinal Sako as Patriarch of the Chaldean Church.

The revocation 'is unprecedented in Iraq's history,' the Cardinal stressed, highlighting 'the government's silence' about the incident and the suffering of the Christian community.

Vatican News
Source: vaticannews.va