On Sunday, the foundation stone was laid for the Assyrian Martyrs’ Monument in Simele, Duhok Governorate, in the presence of Kurdish officials.

“The project is being carried out under the generous patronage of President Masoud Barzani, with the participation of His Holiness Mar Awa Royel III, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East,” Ramy Noori Syawish, the former mayor of Ankawa and MP in the Kurdistan Parliament, posted on X.

“Following the ceremony, we visited the site of the massacre together with a number of friends and offered prayers in remembrance of the souls of the martyrs.”

Over 600 Assyrian Christians lost their lives in the Simele massacre, which was carried out by Iraqi government forces in 1933.

During the ceremony, Patriarch Mar Awa III expressed his gratitude to President Barzani, “as well as to all those who labored diligently, for their support in initiating this important memorial project, in recognition of the massacre of Assyrians that took place in 1933 at the hands of the Iraqi national army at that time.” 

President @masoud_barzani received a U.S.-based Assyrian delegation led by Sam Darmo, President of Assyrians for Justice.

The delegation welcomed President Barzani’s support for Assyrians and other communities and initiative to establish the Assyrian Martyrs’ Monument. pic.twitter.com/uft7fjsBs8

— Safeen Dizayee (@SafeenDizayee) January 5, 2026

He affirmed that the Simele massacre “remains a deep wound in the conscience of the Assyrian Nation, and that true healing requires official recognition of this genocidal massacre by the Iraqi Parliament.”

On Sunday, a U.S.-based Assyrian delegation led by Sam Darmo, President of Assyrians for Justice, visited President Barzani and thanked him for his support of Assyrians and other communities, as well as his efforts to establish the Assyrian Martyrs’ Monument.