URMIA, A CITY FULL OF BELIEFS AND CULTURE

For centuries the city has had a diverse population including Muslims Shiah and Sunny, Chris­tian (Catholic, Prostentant, Nestorians, and Orthodox), Jews, Baha’is and Sufi.

During the 19th century, the region became the center of a short lived Assyrians Renes­saince with many books and newspaper being published in Syriac. The better armed Assyr­ians managed however to cap­ture the whole city following a brief battle. The region descend­ed into chaos again after the as­sassination of the Assyrian Patri­arch Shimum XXI, Benyamin at the hands of Simko Shikak one month later.

Turkish armies and Simko managed the city in June and July 1918. Thousands of Assyr­ians were massacred as part of the Assyrian Genocide, other found refuge under British pro­tection in Iraq.