Source: The Associated Press
[google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iGDzglMzQnftT6gvmsFlzmYulxNgD962CIG82]
Iraqi Christians still reeling from a string of murders last fall find themselves caught in the middle of a power struggle between Kurds and Sunni Arabs that was fueled by this weekend's elections.
The minority community has faced years of violence and intimidation from al-Qaida in Iraq and other Islamic extremists. In the northern city of Mosul and surrounding areas, many also fear the Kurds want incorporate parts of the area into their semiautonomous region in northern Iraq.
The issue came to the fore in Saturday's vote for members of ruling councils in most of Iraq's 18 provinces. Results are not expected for days or even weeks.
But when the votes are finally counted, Kurds are expected to lose the dominance they have enjoyed here in Ninevah province since Sunni Arabs boycotted the last provincial election in 2005.
Christians will get at least one out of 37 council seats in the province, thanks to a minority quota. But many Christians are divided about whether to back the Kurds or the Sunni Arabs in their struggle for domination in Ninevah and its capital city of Mosul.