Even though her village was seized by the Islamic State and she’s now living a rough life in an unfinished mall in Kurdish-protected Northern Iraq, a displaced Christian refugee child is asking God to “forgive” the ISIS militants.
After ISIS seized most of the Mosul region of Iraq last June, over 400 mostly Christian displaced Iraqi families from the villages of Qaraqosh, Bartella and Kharamles descended upon the Kurdish capital of Erbil to live in a half-built mall in the in the Christian neighborhood of Ainkawa.
As the families had picked up and fled their villages in a hurry before the ISIS militants reached their towns, the families could only afford to bring bare necessities and are now living in the mall without much more than the mattresses, blankets and other handouts they receive from humanitarian organizations.
A correspondent with the Arabic Christian television network SAT-7’s “Kids” program interviewed children living in the Ainkawa Mall’s refugee camp and asked them what they missed the most about their lives back home.
In talking with the reporter and camera crew, a little girl named Myriam, from Qaraqosh, assured that although her life has changed drastically in the last year and her family’s future remains uncertain, God continues to provide for her and her family.
“We used to have a house and were entertained, where as here we are not,” Myriam said. “But thank God. God provides for us.”
The reporter was a bit perplexed by Myriam’s comment and asked what she meant by “God provides for us.”
“God loves us and wouldn’t let ISIS kill us,” she explained.
Displaced Iraqi Christian children who fled from Islamic State militants in Mosul, gather around a Christmas tree at a mall still under construction, used as a refugee camp in Erbil, December 24, 2014.
The reporter followed up by asking Myriam what she would do if she ever had the opportunity to retaliate for ISIS’ onslaught of her hometown.
“I won’t do anything to them,” Myriam asserted. “I will only ask God to forgive them.”
After the interview, the reporter thanked Myriam for her time. Then, Miriam replied, thanking him for his sympathy.
“You felt for me,” she said. “I had some feelings and I wanted people to know how I feel.”
Two other girls from Qaraqosh were also interviewed. They were asked what they missed the most about their lives before ISIS took over the region.
“Our school and our church,” Flourine responded.
Maryouma added that, although they miss their church, “Jesus will be with us no matter where we go.”
The reporter subsequently asked, “Is Jesus with you in this camp?”
“Yes,” Fluorine asserted. “In our hearts.”
The video concludes by showing the refugee children outside the entrance of the mall singing: “My love for my glorious Savior will increase with each new day. A new life, a happy day, the day I reunite with the Lord.”
