More on the plight of Christians in the Middle East:
The sectarian violence that followed the U.S. invasion of Iraq and fall of Hussein in 2003 has been brutal for all Iraqis, including Muslim Shiites and Sunnis. But for the nation’s fragile Christian communities, it has been catastrophic.
At least 54 Iraqi churches have been bombed and at least 905 Christians killed in various acts of violence since the U.S. invasion toppled Hussein in 2003, according to Archbishop Louis Sako of the Chaldean Catholic Church in the northern provinces of Kirkuk and Sulimaniya. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Christians have fled. A report on Iraq released Tuesday by Minority Rights Group International said that about 500,000 Christians remain in Iraq, down from an estimated 800,000 to 1.4 million in 2003.
Many Christians – 2 million in the past 20 years — have responded to this increasingly precarious and dangerous situation by fleeing the region. Meanwhile, the Christian population in one Middle Eastern country — Israel — has grown from 34,000 in 1948 to about 140,000 today.
Freedom of religion, anyone?
What do you think?
10:53 am
Wasn’t there tremendous violence and conflict even before 2003? This article makes it sound like the 2003 invasion is what touched off the problem. I’d like to see the PRE 2003 stats to be fair.
9:26 am
this is terrible.Any christian would stand side by side with Israel-I know that I do.My prayers are always with my Christian brothers and sisters where ever they are in the world,and G-d bless and keep safe Israel and all Jews.
12:00 am
AMEN!!!