Iraq’s president on Sunday has pledged nearly $900,000 (1 billion Iraqi dinars) to help Christian families who have fled their homes in the northern city of Mosul because of threats and violence.

The money will help safeguard “the rights and freedoms of Christians” in Iraq, according to a statement from President Jalal Talabani’s office.

A committee of Christian leaders and representatives from Talabani’s office will supervise the distribution of the money, the statement said.

More than half of Mosul’s Christian population — an estimated 13,000 people or 2,300 families — fled the city last month, but the number started to taper off in recent weeks, Nineveh province’s Deputy Governor Khasro Goran told CNN on Tuesday.


Source: The CNN Wire