Iraq

After a short period of fragile peace at the end of 2007, Iraq’s Christian minority was faced with a year full of violence in 2008. The year started with a series of bomb blasts, damaging in total seven Iraqi churches and three convents. Also during the rest of the year, churches were attacked or damaged by bombs. More violence than ever before was specifically directed at Christians because of their faith. Extremists used death threats to force Christians out of entire quarters in Mosul and Baghdad, in what seems to be a religious cleansing campaign. Christians also suffer from the anti-Western atmosphere in the country. Many Iraqis see the West as Christian, so they jump to the conclusion that when you are Christian, you are a collaborator. Having ‘Christianity’ on your ID is sufficient to get you killed. Other motives, especially when targeting Christians in kidnappings, are financial, since many Iraqi Christians are part of the middle class. In 2008, several Christians were murdered, abused and/or kidnapped. No less than five Christians were reported kidnapped and we have recorded at least 35 Christians who were killed for their faith during the past year. However the actual number could be much higher. The violence has caused hundreds of thousands of Iraqi people, both Muslim and Christian, to leave the country, and many are displaced inside Iraq, particularly in Kurdistan.

Situation January 2009

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