Hamdaniya (AsiaNews) - To send a message of "peace and hope" to the whole country, Christians in northern Iraq have erected a statue of Jesus, which recalls the statue of Christ Redeemer on Mount Corcovado, Rio de Janeiro. The sculpture is one-tenth the height of the original- 40 meters high - which dominates the Brazilian metropolis, but has become more destination for faithful and pilgrims.

On 10 April, Fr. Louis Kassab, chairman of the Committee for Religious Affairs, unveiled the statue of the Iraqi Christ Redeemer (pictured). It has been placed at Baghdeda’s check point number 1,at the entrance to the municipal town of al-Hamdaniya in Nineveh governorate. Najib Attallah, head of the checkpoint where the statue stands, says that the idea came from his security guards. "In the past we have set up the crib at Christmas - says the man -. The guards wanted to build a statue for the celebration of Easter, along the lines of Christ Redeemer in Brazil. "

The construction lasted about a month and a half, the men devoting 18 hours of work per week. The work was carried out by two checkpoint guards, Alaa Nasir Kithya and Amaar Anaya, thanks to numerous donations and support from colleagues and faithful of the city. The final cost was 150 thousand dinars, slightly less than 130 dollars.

Bashar Jarjees Habash, coordinator of the Committee for Religious Affairs, stressed that the construction of the statue is a "message of peace for all." "The statue is of stone - he says - and can be removed at any time, but the story of Iraqi Christians can not be erased." We have a long history behind us, claims the man, and we "show our loyalty to Iraq." Alaa Naser Matti, one of the volunteers who helped build the statue, adds that it "should last for 30 years. We wanted to colour it white, because it is the colour of peace, and we will repaint paint it every year. "

Last February in just 10 days eight Christians were killed in Mosul, capital of the governorate of Nineveh. Human rights activists have asked the central government and local government to increase security and protection for the faithful who are victims of a struggle for dominance in the area that involves Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen.

Since the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, about 200 Christians have been  killed in attacks or as a result of the attacks. A carnage that Pope Benedict XVI recalled at Easter, urging the Iraqi authorities to "do more" to protect the minority.