Iraq: Christians ‘murdered for selling alcohol’ (09/05/2003)

The men, who were alcohol vendors in a district of the southern Iraqi city that is home to Armenian and Syrian Catholics, were shot within 10 minutes of each other in their shops by two men, witnesses said.

Shia clerics – whose influence was suppressed under Saddam Hussein – have been warning shopkeepers for weeks to stop selling alcohol or risk severe punishment.

The clerics have become increasingly vocal on a variety of issues, including the status of women, since Saddam’s fall.

Under Saddam, Iraqi Christians were the only citizens permitted to sell alcohol. The trade would attract day trippers from neighbouring Kuwait, about two hours’ drive away, which has a complete ban on alcohol.

Yesterday shopkeepers closed their doors and warned that such killings were to be expected while the country had no rule of law.