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Islamic Rioters Attack Christian Shops in Northern Iraq

Islamic Rioters Attack Christian Shops in Northern Iraq

By Damaris Kremida ISTANBUL (Compass Direct News) – Attacks against Christian Assyrian businesses in northern Iraq over the weekend, which local sources said were organized by a pro-Islamic political party, marked the first such destruction of Christian establishments in the Kurdish region. The rampage threatens the frail security of Iraq’s dwindling Christian population, sources said. After mullah Mala Ismail Osman Sindi’s sermon claiming there was moral corruption in massage parlors in the northern town of Zakho on Friday … Read entire article »

Filed under: Christian, Compass Direct, Iraq, Islam, Persecution

Car Bomb in Northern Iraq Injures at least 20 People Outside Church Building

By Michael Ireland Senior Correspondent, ASSIST News Service BAGHDAD, IRAQ (ANS) – A car bomb exploded outside a Catholic church in central Kirkuk, Iraq, early Tuesday, wounding at least 20 people, authorities said. According to CNN, the attack took place in Kirkuk’s Shatterlo neighborhood around 5:30 a.m. (10:30 p.m. Monday ET). The network cited a police official who spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. CNN said the wounded included staff from the Holy Family Church and people with homes nearby. The Interior Ministry stated 23 people were injured. The CNN report said police told the network the explosion damaged the church and a number of nearby houses. Kirkuk is an ethnically-divided city located about 240 kilometers (150 miles) north of Baghdad. In the past few … Read entire article »

Filed under: Assist News Service, Iraq, Persecution

Iraqi Christians Murdered in their Homes

By Jeremy Reynalds Senior Correspondent for ASSIST News Service COVENTRY, ENGLAND (ANS) — Hundreds of Iraqi Christians are fleeing Baghdad and Mosul as murderers target families in their homes and workplaces. According to a news release from the Barnabas Fund, an elderly Christian couple and their daughter became the latest victims of a continuing campaign against the country’s believers when they were killed in their home on Dec. 5. Four gunmen raided the property in Baghdad and repeatedly shot them with pistols equipped with silencers. The Barnabas Fund said the victims, Hikmat and Samira Sammak – like many Iraqi Christians – had left the capital and gone to live in the north. They had just returned briefly to Baghdad to finalize the sale of their home and furniture. Two weeks ago, the Barnabas Fund said, … Read entire article »

Filed under: Assist News Service, Iraq, Persecution

Three Christians Murdered in Iraq by Islamists

Three Iraqi Christians were murdered last Sunday and two others were injured in two separate incidents in the city of Kirkuk. These attacks take place in a context of intense hostility to Christians from militant Islamists. The following has been posted on various websites: The General Secretariat of the Adherent of Islam Brigade has decided to address the final warning to … the infidel Christian Crusaders … and order you to leave immediately, in masses and permanently from the Muslim countries. There is no place for you infidel Christians among the Muslim believers in Iraq from now on. Otherwise, our swords will be legalized over your neck. The letter is part of a determined Islamist campaign to drive out the Christian community from Iraq. Although the Christians, as ethnic Assyrians, are the … Read entire article »

Filed under: Christian, Iraq, Islam

The Overcomers (Iraq – December 2008)

These are dangerous times for Christians in Iraq. The northern city of Mosul has witnessed a wave of Islamic violence against the followers of Christ. … Read entire article »

Filed under: Christian, Iraq, Muslim, Voice of the Martyrs