According to officials, an attack on an Assyrian Christian celebration in the autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq on Tuesday left two persons hurt.
The attack in the city of Dohuk is being investigated by the Asayesh police force in the region, but they have not yet been able to identify whether it was a “terrorist” act.
A senior government official told AFP, under condition of anonymity, that a Syrian suspect had been taken into custody.
Kurdish media said the attacker used a cleaver.
Two were injured in an attack on Christians in North Iraq.
Credit: NBC News
According to a police source, the attack took place in a market and targeted the Akitu springtime celebrations observed by members of the Assyrian community to mark the first day of their calendar year.
“Medical officials in Dohuk reported that a 65-year-old woman was struck in the head and experienced a bleed that did not necessitate surgery and that the woman’s health was “stable.”
Authorities also said that a slight wound to the scalp was sustained by another 25-year-old man.
At a press conference, Dohuk Governor Ali Tatar stated that “the investigation is ongoing… our security forces arrested the suspect.”
About 400,000 Christians now live in Iraq, down from about 1.5 million before Saddam Hussein’s overthrow in the early 2000s. Most of them have fled the country’s violent episodes.
