Chaldean Patriarch says withdrawal of recognition of his role is climax of campaign to seize Church's assets

The leader of Iraq’s largest Christian community has condemned a Presidential order overturning a decree which recognises him as Patriarch, calling the move “offensive” and the climax of a campaign to seize control of the Church’s assets. 

Cardinal Louis Raphael I Sako said Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid’s decision to revoke his predecessor’s pronouncement acknowledging him as Patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church means that in the eyes of the state he lacks the authority to lead his people and administer ecclesiastical properties.