Rosie Malek-Yonan
Actor-Author-Historian-Assyrian activist, for her biography and personal websites please click on the following links.
Rosie Malek-Yonan website
The Crimson field - Book
We of the Assyrian Levies Association are honoured to introduce Ms. Rosie Malek-Yonan as our Patron. Her outstanding dedication to the memory of the fallen and her career in the Arts will serve as a great role model not only to this Association but to all Assyrians.
A word from our patron...
In times of war noble men engage in battle, fighting oppression and tyranny in defense of freedom and liberty. The Assyrian Levies were no less. What made these fighting noble men exceptional was that they had no country of their own, yet they fought in two world wars after the Assyrians declared themselves the “smallest ally of the allies,” during WWI. The Assyrian Levies were born of the vestiges of Assyrian militia from Mesopotamia and later Iraq as well as Assyrian refugees from
Urmia, in Northwestern Iran, who were headed for
Photo; Gabriel "Gaby" kiwarkis
President Assyrian Levies Association
Royal Australian Regiment-retired
Baquba in a mass exodus fleeing the Assyrian Genocide of WWI that witnessed the destruction of two-thirds of the Assyrian population totaling 750,000. With the aid of the British, the fleeing refugees had no sooner reached Hamadan, Iran, when in a stunning move, the Assyrian men were at once drafted as soldiers under the government authority of the British, and the Irregular Assyrian Levies were placed under the command of British officers to fight for the British cause leading the advancement into battles. Eventually, the British lead the Assyrians from Hamadan to Baquba in Mesopotamia some forty-eight kilometers from Baghdad where refugee camps were assembled.
Photo; Vice President Assyrian Levies Association Mr Paul Azzo pictured with the former Prime Minister of Australia Mr John Howard.
The Irregular Assyrian Levies would continue to serve in the frontlines under the authority of the British until 1932 when the Assyrians resigned en masse. In
1940, at the start of World War II, the British assembled able-bodied Assyrians into Levies once again as war swept the world. Finally by 1955 the Assyrian Levy troops in Iraq were dismantled and released unreservedly from duty, leaving the Assyrians in an indeterminate state. The British act of positioning the Assyrians in the vanguard of battle created a vital fighting force in the combat against despotism. Despite their military contributions, the Assyrian Levies never advanced into the pages of history but for the fervent efforts of each of their respective families who kept alive their memories and preserved documents and photos of those who bravely but silently served the Assyrian nation and its allies with distinction and honor. Now these documents have finally been gathered in one significant collection.
In April 2000, Gabriel “Gaby” Kiwarkis, a patriotic Assyrian who served in the Australian military and whose motto is “Lest We Forget,” began to undertake the arduous and meticulous task of ensuring that the Assyrian Levies do not remain as mere remnants of a forgotten force of a stateless nation fading in the dark passages of tales from long ago. The launching of the Assyrian Levies Website would insure the restoration and preservation of a chapter in Assyrian history. No longer would the Assyrian Levies be but a ghostly whisper from the past. Gaby diligently worked to safeguard the memory of these Assyrian noble men in service who deserved recognition and tributary praise. The culmination of his efforts produced this most informative website that brings worldwide appreciation and appeal to the wartime contributions made by Assyrians. The monumental task of gathering and assembling such fundamentally vital historical documents has
restored the honor, names and faces of the countless Assyrian veterans who would otherwise remain forgotten in the annals of history. The documents presented in this website also shed light on the hugely neglected Assyrian Genocide of 1914-1918 as well as the Assyrian Massacre of 1933 in Semele, Iraq, where 3,000 unarmed Assyrians were attacked and killed by Iraqi troops. Beyond the preservation of history, Gaby’s relentless endeavor since 2000 has led to the formation of “The Assyrian Levies Support Unit,” a woman’s committee that oversees administration affairs as well as “The Assyrian Levies Youth Group,” comprised mainly of university students researching and studying issues concerning the Assyrian Genocide. Consequently, the Assyrian Levies are now honored by being considered distinguished veterans recognized by the Australian Parliament and the Australian Veterans, and are rightfully
Photo; youth president Mr Zaia Toma-Federal Secretary- Young Liberal Movement Australia
included in military books. In researching background information for my historical novel, The Crimson Field, a true story set to the backdrop of the Assyrian Genocide of 1914-1918, I found this website which is assembled in chronological order, to be an indispensable reference source of historical facts concerning the Assyrian Levies. I found myself visiting it frequently to gather valuable and helpful information. I personally found this website to be definitively the most comprehensive collection on the subject. I have been made aware that my book, The Crimson Field, has awakened the consciousness of the Assyrian youth to probe deeper into their heritage and nationality. This site will do no less for not only the Assyrian youth but for all those who seek truth in history.
Thank you, Gaby, for rescuing the countless names and faces of our nation’s unsung heroes whose contributions to humanity had lapsed and fallen into decay.
~Rosie Malek-Yonan
Assyrian artist and activist
Author of The Crimson Field
Assyrian Levies Ladies Auxiliary
From left- Mariam Kelaita – Linda Warda – Wardia Odah – Shamiran Sayad
coordinator Sireence Zakaria - Loudia Gewargis
