Aswat al-Iraq

Translated by: Aziz Emmanuel Zebari

A hundred yards from al-Najaf Airport, archaeologist Ali al-Fatli shows visitors remains of a church, a monastery, and other ruins thought to belong to Christian remains in the area some 1700 years ago, according to the Associated Press.

The church, monastery, and the ruins emerged during the last five years with the expansion in the construction of al-Najaf Airport which are thought to be perhaps the remains of the Cave of Hira.

“The discovery of the site in 2007 which was later neglected, is a symbolic reference to Christianity which informed this country for long and whose role receded following the immigration of hundreds of thousands of Christians due to the waves of violence which swept the country in the aftermath of the American invasion in 2003”, said the news agency.

At the same time it also reflects the renaissance witnessed by the city of al-Najaf, the holy city of the Shiite community; for the expansion of the airport, which led to the discovery of those qntiquities, reflects the increase in the number of visitors to the city.

The antiquities “ remained in their site near the airport in a safe location away from thieves while some crosses were taken to the National Museum in Baghdad”, explained the agency.

“ Everything here is puzzling. I am sure we will find more remains if excavations continue”, said al-Fatli.

However, these antiquities and excavations offer us a hope that Christianity and Islam are capable of coexisting in peace as is evident from centuries of such coexistence throughout history.