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An Islamic extremist assault on a Syrian Catholic Church in Baghdad on Oct. 31, 2010 was one of the bloodiest attacks on the country’s dwindling Christian community, ended a year of increasing violence against Christians in Iraq. Seven or eight Islamic militants stormed into Our Lady of Salvation church during evening mass after detonating bombs in the neighbourhood, gunning down two policemen at the stock exchange across the street, and blowing up their own car. More than 100 people were reportedly attending mass. A militant organization called the Islamic State of Iraq, which has links to al Qaeda in Mesopotamia, claimed responsibility for the attack. The militants sprayed the sanctuary with bullets. Iraqi security forces launched an assault on the church building, and it was unclear how many of the 58 deaths resulted from the raid; the militants reportedly began killing hostages when the security force assault began.

Political tensions ahead of parliamentary elections in Iraq on March 7, 2010 also left at least eight Chaldean Christians dead and hundreds of families fleeing Mosul. Christians are victims of political tension between political groups, but maybe also by fundamentalist sectarian cleansing.” On Feb. 23, 2010 the killing of Eshoee Marokee, a Christian, and his two sons in their home in front of other family members sent shock waves across the Christian community.

Finally, three Christian students were killed and 180 injured in a May 2, 2010 bomb attack on a bus outside Mosul. The blasts targeted three buses full of Christians travelling to the University of Mosul for classes. The convoy of buses, which brings Christian students from villages east of Mosul, was making its daily route accompanied by two Iraqi army cars.

By year’s end it was estimated that only 334,000 Christians were left in Iraq, less than half of the number in 1991.

 

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