Middle East Christian Committee (MECHRIC) Urges the UN to Protect Assyrians and Yezidis in Iraq and Syria
Los Angeles, California (PRWEB) March 18, 2015 -- The American Mesopotamian Organization (AMO) in coordination with members of The Middle East Christian Committee or MECHRIC submitted a memorandum this past Friday, March 13, 2015, to the Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Ban Ki Moon, addressing the matter of the ongoing ethnic cleansing of ethno-religious minorities in Iraq & Syria as well as the need to establish interim protected zones in the regions. MECHRIC is a federation of Middle East Christian NGOs and organizations founded in 1981 in Beirut works globally to defend the rights of marginalized nationalities and identities in the region of the Middle East.
“There is a growing chorus of peoples from around the world calling for the protection of the Assyrians, Yazidis and other ethno-religious minorities in Iraq and Syria,” members of MECHRIC said, noting that “All peoples have the fundamental right to defend themselves and navigate their own futures - we are calling the international community to take action on what it knows is the right thing to do for Assyrians and others terrorized by ISIS in Iraq and Syria.”
In addition to meeting with Mr. Ban Ki Moon’s office, MECHRIC members also discussed the Memorandum with the French, British, Russian and American Missions at the UN.
Mr. Lazar, chairman of AMO also noted that although ISIS was no longer advancing, "The Iraqi state is in shambles, and even the Kurdish Regional Government is itself seeking international protection from ISIS.”
With Assyrians and other ethno-religious minorities in the region finding themselves alone and without an international advocate or military protection, the members of MECHRIC are calling on the United States and international community to aid and support the ethnic and religious minorities in Iraq and Syria by all means available.
MECHRIC members include the Assyrian American National Federation, the American Mesopotamian Organization (AMO), the Council of Syriac Organizations, the Chaldean Syriac Assyrian Popular Council, Coptic Solidarity International, the Yazidi Human Rights Organization International, the Melkite Committee and the American Maronite Union. MECHRIC can be contacted at http://www.mechric.org.
About the American Mesopotamian Organization
The American Mesopotamian Organization believes that the Assyrian American community can be instrumental in bringing about change to US policy towards the Assyrians of the Middle East. We strive to be part of this change and part of the solution in defending Assyrian political and human rights throughout the Near East. While we will represent the collective Assyrian American viewpoint on matters of public policy, we will also serve as liaison between the community and their elected leaders. For more information, please visit http://www.americanmesopotamian.org.
David William Lazar, American Mesopotamian Organization, http://www.restoreninevehnow.org, +1 661-220-0372, [email protected]
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