As ISIS continues to wage a campaign to eradicate the entire Christian presence and every trace of that ancient community’s existence in northern Iraq, a treasure of Christian patrimony, consisting of relics and manuscripts testifying to nearly two millennia of Christianity, is being systematically destroyed. Dr. Amal Marogy, originally from the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, fears that the ongoing jihadist religious cleansing of this 1,600-year-old Christian community means that Iraq's Aramaic language and culture is in danger of dying out. ISIS has already burned some 1,500 biblical manuscripts held at the fourth-century monastery of St. Behnam, which was seized last summer in Nineveh. While some manuscripts, including those of Mar Behnam, have been digitized, many others have not.
Dr. Marogy is on an urgent mission to record the social history of her region, Duhok, and its Aramaic songs, prayers, and poetry. In 2013, she founded the Aradin Charitable Trust to help preserve Aramaic and the Christian heritage throughout the Middle East. She is an Affiliated Researcher in Neo-Aramaic Studies at Cambridge University and was previously Director of Studies in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at King's College.
On December 2nd, Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom hosted Dr. Marogy for a presentation on the current situation in Iraq and her foundation’s efforts to train clergy from Middle Eastern Churches to protect and preserve ancient Church documents and chronicle contemporary events and human rights abuses. Nina Shea, Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Religious Freedom at Hudson Institute, moderated the event.
Murray will join Hudson Senior Fellow Dr. Rebeccah L. Heinrichs for a discussion on his conversations in the Middle East, the aftermath of the October 7 massacre, and the historical and moral dimensions of the ongoing conflict between Israel and the terrorists who seek to destroy it.
At Sea Air Space 2025, Senior Fellows Bryan Clark, Dan Patt, and Timothy A. Walton will discuss their findings with a panel of government and industry experts tasked with implementing these ideas.
The Hudson Institute Political Studies Policy Certificate Program gathers talented early career professionals for advanced study of American foreign and domestic policy and national security, led by policy experts and experienced government officials.
In this episode, experts discuss what regional powers such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Türkiye, and Qatar are doing in the Horn, their strategies and motivations, and the impact they might have on the region.
