News

Iraqi and Syrian Christians

Peter van Agtmael's coverage of the Christian refugees who fled their homes in Iraq and Syria

Peter van Agtmael

Peter van Agtmael A statue destroyed by ISIS last summer in a 13th-century church in Telskuf, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael A Dwekh Nawsha Assyrian Christian militia unit at the front lines helps resettle to a house near their barracks the last residents of Telskuf, three elderly women who have refused to leave and live (...)
Peter van Agtmael A Dwekh Nawsha Assyrian Christian militia unit at the front lines tries to resettle Kamala Karim Shaya to a house near their barracks. Three elderly women have refused to leave the front line town (...)
Peter van Agtmael An Assyrian who has helped rescue dozens of other Assyrians from ISIS captivity is photographed to protect his anonymity. Erbil, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael Assyrian refugees tell their stories of fleeing ISIS. Erbil, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael A Yazidi girl tells the story of her kidnapping, imprisonment and eventual marriage to an ISIS militant. Erbil, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael A line waits for remittances from the Iraqi central government. Erbil, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael A small apartment block housing Assyrian refugees. Erbil, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael Matthew van Dyke, an American adventurer and former revolutionary in the Libyan Civil War now training an Assyrian Christian militia in northern Iraq through his organizations, the Sons of Liberty. (...)
Peter van Agtmael A spokesperson for an Assyrian Political Party. Erbil, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael A bullet wound and a Jesus tattoo on a member of a Dwekh Nawsha Assyrian Christian militia unit near the frontline against ISIS. Baqofa, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael Checkpoint of a Dwekh Nawsha Assyrian Christian militia unit near the frontline against ISIS. Baqofa, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael Roadblock by the headquarters of a Dwekh Nawsha Assyrian Christian militia unit near the frontline against ISIS. Baqofa, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael An NPU (an Assyrian Christian political party) training course for the senior Non Commission Officers of their small militia. The training is being conducted by 'James,' a former U.S. Army soldier (...)
Peter van Agtmael A Dwekh Nawsha Assyrian Christian militia member near the frontline. Baqofa, Iraq. 2015. © Peter van Agtmael | Magnum Photos
Peter van Agtmael An NPU (an Assyrian Christian political party) training course for the senior Non Commission Officers of their small militia. The training is being conducted by 'James,' a former U.S. Army soldier (...)
Peter van Agtmael An NPU (an Assyrian Christian political party) training course for the senior Non Commission Officers of their small militia. The training is being conducted by 'James,' a former U.S. Army soldier (...)

Last June, ISIS took Mosul, The militants painted a red Arabic ‘‘n,’’ for Nasrane, a slur, on Christian homes. Many residents managed to escape fled to Qaraqosh, less than 20 miles east on the Nineveh Plain, a 1,500-square-mile plot of contested land that lies between Iraq’s Kurdish north and its Arab south.

This past May, Peter van Agtmael traveled to the region to photograph Christian refugees who’d fled their homes in Iraq and Syria.

TEARSHEET. The New York Times Magazine, September 2015 (cover).
TEARSHEET. The New York Times Magazine, September 2015. Pages 30-31.
TEARSHEET. The New York Times Magazine, September 2015. Pages 32-33.
Stay in touch
Learn about online and offline exhibitions, photography fairs, gallery events, plus fine print news and activities, on a monthly basis.
Get fortnightly tips and advice articles, find out about the latest workshops, free online events and on-demand courses.
Stay up to date every Thursday with Magnum photographers’ activities, new work, stories published on the Magnum website, and the latest offerings from our shop.