North Iraqi Arab in Türkiye (Turkey)


Population
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

Most of the Iraqi Arabs who live in Turkey arrived as refugees either in the late 1980s during the war between Iraq and Iran, or in the early part of the Gulf War in 1991. There were a large number of Kurds who came as well as Arabs. Turkey was a preferred destination because it was close to Iraq. The Turkish government made sure there was not a new influx of Iraqis entering their country after Gulf War 2 in 2003. There are some newer refugees that arrived around 2014 because of ISIS attacks in Iraq. Some of these have returned to Iraq. Most Iraqi Arab refugees in Turkey are now settled in Istanbul.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Unfortunately, many of the Iraqi Arabs in Turkey are not yet established or settled into new lives in the new country. They sometimes face abuse from the Turks who are tired of having an increasing number of refugees in their country. These Iraqis have an ally in the charity Carita, which helps both Muslim and Christian refugees in Turkey. Over half of these Iraqis in Turkey are male, and they tend to be young. The Turkish government expects the Iraqi Arabs to eventually leave Turkey, and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) helps them to resettle Iraqi Arabs in other countries. It seems unlikely that Iraqi Arabs will be able to settle in Turkey and begin new jobs.


While Islam and Christianity share many beliefs about God and historical figures, many Muslims view faith in Christ as a threat.
What Are Their Beliefs?

Though there is a slight majority of Shia Muslims among Iraqi Arabs, the Sunnis are more likely to be refugees in other countries like Turkey. Both Shia and Sunni Muslims believe that the One, Supreme God, Allah, spoke through his prophet, Mohammed, and taught mankind how to live a righteous life through the Koran and the Hadith. To live a righteous life, you must utter the Shahada (a statement of faith), pray five times a day facing Mecca, fast from sunup to sundown during the month of Ramadan, give alms to the poor, and make a pilgrimage to Mecca if you have the means. Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol, eating pork, gambling, stealing, slandering, and making idols. They gather for corporate prayer on Friday afternoons at a mosque, their place of worship. The two main holidays for Sunni Muslims are Eid al Fitr, the breaking of the monthly fast and Eid al Adha, the celebration of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son to Allah. Like most other Arab Muslims, Iraqis depend on the spirit world for their daily needs since they regard Allah as too distant. Allah may determine their eternal salvation, but the spirits determine how well we live in our daily lives. For that reason, they must appease the spirits. The often use charms and amulets to help them with spiritual forces. There are also some traditional Christians among the Iraqi Arabs in Turkey.


What Are Their Needs?

Iraqi Arabs in Turkey need to find a permanent home where there is peace and they can do productive work. Most likely, they need to leave Turkey.


Prayer Points

Pray for Iraqi Arabs in Turkey to know God as their provider and lean on him. Pray for the Lord to direct Iraqi Arabs in his ways and help them to put their identity in Christ. Pray for a movement to Christ that cannot be stopped. Pray for Iraqi Arab communities to become open to the influence of Jesus Christ in their lives.


Scripture Prayers for the Arab, North Iraqi in Türkiye (Turkey).


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Arab, North Iraqi
People Name in Country Arab, North Iraqi
Natural Name North Iraqi Arab
Pronunciation ee-RAH-kee AE-rub
Alternate Names
Population this Country 590,000
Population all Countries 11,440,000
Total Countries 5
Indigenous No
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group No
Pioneer Workers Needed 12
People ID 20327
ROP3 Code 116046
ROP25 Code 300404
ROP25 Name Arab, Iraqi
Country Türkiye (Turkey)
Region Asia, Central
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 50  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Mardin, Sirnak, Batman, Siirt, and Sanliurfa provinces.   Source:  Ethnologue 2016
Country Türkiye (Turkey)
Region Asia, Central
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 50  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Mardin, Sirnak, Batman, Siirt, and Sanliurfa provinces..   Source:  Ethnologue 2016

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Primary Religion: Islam
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.10 %)
0.50 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
97.00 %
Non-Religious
2.50 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Arabic, North Mesopotamian (590,000 speakers)
Language Code ayp   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Arabic, North Mesopotamian (590,000 speakers)
Language Code ayp   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Arabic, North Mesopotamian
Photo Source National Archives  Creative Commons 
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.



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