ICC Note: When Esam escaped Iraq, his relatives were trapped inside Qaraqosh while ISIS invaded and overtook the Christians village. His brother in law was reportedly tortured for hours before being crucified in the likeness of Jesus. Militants told him that if he loved Jesus so much he should die like Jesus.  The rest of the family eventually escaped ISIS and moved to Sweden. Esam is separate from them in Jordan.

11/24/2016 Iraq (Gospel Herald): Esam, a father-of-three, told persecution watchdog World Watch Monitor that several of his wife’s relatives had not managed to flee Qaraqosh before IS overtook the predominately Christian town in 2014. Like all Christians in the region, they were given an ultimatum: leave, convert to Islam, pay a protection tax (jiyza) or be killed. Those who refused to comply with ISIS’ demands were shown little mercy.

“My wife’s brother was crucified by Daesh,” Esam said, using another name for ISIS. “He was crucified and tortured in front of his wife and children, who were forced to watch. They told him that if he loved Jesus that much, he would die like Jesus.”

Esam said the fighters tortured his relative from 6pm until 11pm; they cut his stomach open and shot him before leaving him hanging, crucified.

The Christian man revealed that eventually, a Swedish organization helped the man’s wife and children, where they now reside. Like thousands of other Iraqi Christians forced to flee their hometowns, Esam is currently seeking refuge in neighboring Jordan.

Two other members of his wife’s family, a Christian couple, were abducted by the terrorist group, Esam revealed. To this day, the husband has not been heard of since and the wife “now lives with one of the Daesh [IS] amirs.”

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