BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamist insurgents have issued an ultimatum to northern Iraq's dwindling Christian population to either convert to Islam, pay a religious levy or face death, according to a statement distributed in the militant-controlled city of Mosul.
"We offer them three choices: Islam; the dhimma contract - involving payment of jizya; if they refuse this they will have nothing but the sword," the announcement said.
Mosul, once home to diverse faiths, had a Christian population of around 100,000 a decade ago, but waves of attacks on Christians since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein have seen those numbers collapse.
http://www.newsweek.com/convert-pay-tax-or-die-islamic-state-warns-christians-iraq-259888
Here is a BBC article:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28381455
This NY Times article is the most detailed and heartrending one:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/19/world/middleeast/isis-forces-last-iraqi-christians-to-flee-mosul.html?_r=0
Not unexpectedly, the largest Canadian news agencies do not carry this story...