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Iraq to summon US ambassador over remarks about Christian leader

20 July 2023 06:12 (UTC +04:00)

Iraq's president said late on Wednesday he would summon the United States ambassador to Baghdad over critical remarks by a U.S. State Department spokesperson regarding the Iraqi government's treatment of a top Iraqi Christian leader, APA reports citing Reuters.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Tuesday criticized a decision by Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid to revoke a decree that had recognized Cardinal Louis Sako as head of the Chaldean Catholic church in Iraq and allowed him to oversee its assets.

"I will say we are disturbed by the harassment of Cardinal Sako ... and troubled by the news that he has left Baghdad," Miller told a press briefing.

"We look forward to his safe return. The Iraqi Christian community is a vital part of Iraq's identity and a central part of Iraq's history of diversity and tolerance," Miller said.

Rashid was "disappointed by accusations leveled against the Iraqi government" by Miller and so would summon the ambassador, a presidency statement said.

Defending his decision, Rashid has said it was aimed at correcting a constitutional anomaly as presidents had no business recognizing heads of religious establishments. He said the move was not aimed at undermining Sako, whom Rashid said he respects.

On Monday, the Vatican Embassy in Baghdad in a statement said that it "regrets the misunderstandings and inappropriate dealings concerning the role of ... Sako as the custodian of the properties of the Chaldean Church."