babylon fm
the only english language radio station in iraq
Disclaimer: This article was originally created in 2021.
Babylon FM is a radio station based out of Ainkawa, a Christian neighborhood on the outskirts of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan autonomous region in Iraq. It’s the type of radio station you hear in the US as the hosts speak English. Its main host has a thick American accent, and they play mostly American music. The station is hosted by a two-man duo, Noor Matti and Mivan Mandalawi. Both men spent quite a bit of time living abroad in the west and when they moved to Erbil, they decided to start Iraq’s only English-language radio station.
Babylon FM is Noor’s brainchild. He was raised in Detroit, Michigan. He says he is part of a generation going through an identity crisis, growing up in places in which they have no roots in. After graduating from college, he decided to explore and try to find a place where he belonged. So, he tricked his parents and bought a one-way ticket to Erbil.
“I tricked them, it was a one-way ticket, I didn’t go back!” Noor recalls, “I quickly found a job here, and slowly started establishing myself, I saw a lot of potential here”.
Noor’s co-host Mivan also agrees,
“I got everything here and nothing back in Australia, why should I go back?”
Noor is a Chaldean. Who are the Chaldeans? In a nutshell, Chaldeans are a Catholic Christian ethnic group originating primarily from Iraq. But due to religious and ethnic persecution, poor economic conditions and lack of security, most Chaldeans have fled Iraq and now there is more Chaldeans living in the US then Iraq itself.
In 2014, ISIS took over large swathes of land in Iraq. Wherever they took over, they implemented their hardline sharia laws such as restricting women rights, brutal punishments such as beheadings, and banned smoking and music. They even jammed Babylon FM radio waves to prevent it from reaching lands under their control in Nineveh and Mosul. During those days when ISIS was at its strongest, pushing for a more liberal open-minded Iraq was dangerous work.
“Those were the war days as we like to call it”,
Noor, talking about the days when ISIS was a huge threat,
“we used to have radio wars at that time because they (ISIS) were purposely trying to jam Babylon FM because it was penetrating the airways of Mosul.”
Even though there was a risk of death, Noor didn’t give up.
“We were threatened, I was personally threatened by these terrorists, it was a dangerous time 2014, 2015 and early 2016. so, it gave you a reason, even more passion and this is the reason were still alive today with the radio station. it’s beyond a job here, we are part of a movement saying this is ok, being different is ok, listening to English music is ok.”
Besides threats from ISIS, there is also a gap between Noor, Babylon FM’s movement and the old cultural status quo. In 20 years, the way Kurdistan and Iraq will look can go either way. People like Noor wants to see a more open-minded society that accepts everyone for who they are but at the same time they also want to see the local culture flourish, not disappear. But that isn’t easy, living in the era of globalization. If you look at it, most people on earth wear the same clothes, t-shirt, jeans, suits, Nike sneakers, people even started to listen to the same music. It might be in a different language, but it seems like every country has a famous rapper. Keeping the balance between old and new, is tough. Noor says the government and public officials should be doing more to preserve these ancient cultures so that they don’t disappear.
Along with Babylon FM, Noor started and runs Shlama Foundation, an NGO which helps mainly the disenfranchised Christian community. With a lack of help from the local government and the international community, Noor puts it on himself to help people who needs to be helped.
