Armenians in Iraq

With the outbreak of civil war that followed the toppling of the Hussein regime, Armenians faced the same targeting as other Christian groups. Many Armenians have left Iraq due to violence, harassment and economic decline. A large number have sought refuge in Armenia or among the Armenian diaspora in other countries – either to settle down or wait until the situation in Iraq gets better.

As Christians, Armenians have also found themselves targeted in the recent insurgency by extremist ISIS forces. Following the advance of the group in 2014, many Armenian villages in Northern Iraq feared they would be attack. In response, the Armenian village of Hawresk, west of Dohuk, established its own military force to defend itself from ISIS.

Many displaced Armenians have settled in the relatively safer Iraqi Kurdistan region in recent years. The Constitution of the Kurdistan region recognizes Armenians as an ethnic component, provides the right to mother-tongue education in the Armenian language, and reserves one seat in parliament for Armenians. There are at least two Armenian schools and five churches in the region.