A little-noticed provision to arm Iraqi Christians in the House version of a must-pass defense bill is inadvertently fueling unrest between rival militias on the Ninevah Plains, an Iraqi melting pot.
The nonbinding provision, inserted by Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., a conservative Christian member of the House Armed Services Committee, notes “the important role of the Iraqi Christian militias within the military campaign against [the Islamic State (IS)] in Iraq, and the specific threat to the Christian population.” It calls on the United States to “provide arms, training, and appropriate equipment to vetted elements of the Ninevah Plains Council,” a governing council being proposed by Assyrian factions but with no guarantee of being formed.
