The letter from Wales Archbishop Dr Barry Morgan, and signed by 21 other senior churchmen, comes in the wake of the deadly bombing of Liberty on February 9 in which seven people were killed and more than 100 injured.
It states: “In the early morning of Saturday 9 February, Camp Liberty (Baghdad) which houses 3,100 Iranian dissidents including 1,000 women was attacked by at least 40 missiles and heavy mortars. Six people including a woman were killed and more than 100 wounded in this brutal attack. Some of the injured are in a critical condition.
“Unfortunately Martin Kobler, Chief of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), has played a destructive role in all of this. The representatives of the residents in Liberty and their lawyers repeatedly warned Martin Kobler about the vulnerability of Camp Liberty to attacks, the inhumane conditions under which the residents lived and the serious threats to their well-being from or at the behest of the Iranian regime.
“Following the latest terrorist attack on Liberty, the camp representatives insisted that Kobler should come and see for himself and witness the results of this great crime against humanity committed against the camp residents which he had prepared the ground for and facilitated. He refused to do so alleging vague ‘security’ reasons as an excuse.”
The letter urges the British Government to ‘strongly condemn the slaughter of innocent refugees’ and take the matter to the UN Security Council so it can guarantee that Liberty residents are given humanitarian aid and returned to Camp Ashraf.
It also demands that the UN Secretary General assigns ‘a new neutral representative’ to replace Mr Kobler.
The 22 church leaders who signed the letter are:
The Most Reverend Dr Barry Morgan, Archbishop of Wales
The Right Reverend Robert Paterson, The Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man
The Right Revd Tim Stevens, Lord Bishop of Leicester
The Right Revd Peter Price, The Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells
The Right Reverend Mike Hill, The Lord Bishop of Bristol
The Right Reverend John Pritchard, The Lord Bishop of Oxford
The Right Revd Dr John Inge, The Lord Bishop of Worcester
The Right Revd Anthony Priddis, The Lord Bishop of Hereford
The Right Revd. Nicholas Reade, Former Lord Bishop of Blackburn
The Right Revd Andrew John, The Bishop of Bangor
The Rev John Davies, Bishop of Swansea and Brecon
The Right Reverend Richard Frith, The Bishop of Hull
The Right Reverend Adrian Newman, The Bishop of Stepney
The Right Revd Dominic Walker, The Bishop of Bishop of Monmouth
The Right Revd Alan Gregory Clayton Smith, The Bishop of St Albans
The Right Revd James William Scobie Newcome, The Bishop of Carlisle
The Right Revd Andrew Watson, The Bishop of Aston
The Right Revd Dr Lee S Rayfield, The Bishop of Swindon
Reverend Andrew J Bryer, Northallerton Methodist Church
Reverend Mark Oakley, St Paul’s Cathedral
Reverend Ingrid Munro, Diocese of Derby
Reverend Robert Hampson, Holy Trinity Vicarage, London