23 Hurt As Car Bomb Explodes Near Iraqi Church

Two other attacks on Christians foiled

This Syrian Catholic church in Kirkuk, Iraq, was damaged by a car bomb on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2011. (Photo credit: Emad Matti / AP)

August 2, 2011

SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq — A car bomb outside a Christian church wounded 23 people Tuesday as security forces found and disabled vehicles packed with explosives outside two other churches in northern Iraq.

The bombing and the two averted attacks in the northern city of Kirkuk signal continued violence against Iraqi Christians, nearly 1 million of whom have fled since the war began in 2003. …

Following the blast at the Syrian Catholic church, police discovered two more car bombs parked outside the Christian Anglican church and the Mar Gourgis church, both in downtown Kirkuk. …

Violence against Christians stepped up late last year, climaxing in the Oct. 31 [2010] siege of a Catholic cathedral in downtown Baghdad that left 68 dead and scored wounded when al-Qaida suicide bombers held worshippers hostage for hours before detonating their explosives belts.

Since then, the Vatican and the U.S. Congress have pleaded for Iraq’s government to do more to protect Christians in Iraq.

A State Department report says Christian leaders estimate that 400,000 to 600,000 Christians remain in Iraq, down from a prewar level of as high as 1.4 million by some estimates.

Full story

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2/7/12 Update

Video

Is there a ‘war on Christians’ in Muslim world? (MSNBC TV, Feb. 6, 2012) – Anti-Christian violence in the Muslim world is on the rise and underreported, according to a new article in Newsweek. Justine Rosenthal, the magazine’s executive editor, discusses this “war on Christians” with MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts. (02:16)

At least 24 Coptic Christians were killed in Cairo during clashes with the Egyptian Army on Oct. 9, 2011. (Photo credit: Thomas Hartwell / Redux via Newsweek)

The global war on Christians in the Muslim world (by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Newsweek, Feb. 5, 2012) — We hear so often about Muslims as victims of abuse in the West and combatants in the Arab Spring’s fight against tyranny. But, in fact, a wholly different kind of war is underway — an unrecognized battle costing thousands of lives. Christians are being killed in the Islamic world because of their religion. It is a rising genocide that ought to provoke global alarm. … Full story

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Related reports on this site

Video

Iraq’s Christians under siege (NBC News, Jan. 25, 2011) – Extremists have stepped up attacks on Iraqi Christians in recent months, threatening the ancient community’s very existence. NBC News’ Stephanie Gosk reports. (02:47)

Christians Fleeing New Iraq (Jan. 20, 2011)

Christians Persecuted in Iraq (Dec. 30, 2010)

After Saddam, Christian Persecution in New Iraq (Dec. 19, 2010)

Rivers of Christian Blood in Iraq (Nov. 3, 2010)

Catholic Hostages Killed in Iraq (Oct. 31, 2010)

Christian Cleansing in Iraq (July 12, 2009)

In Iraq, an Exodus of Christians (May 16, 2009)

Christians on the Run in Iraq (Nov. 26, 2008)

Christians Flee Iraqi City (Oct. 12, 2008)

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FROM THE ARCHIVES

One Year Ago — August 3, 2010

Iraq-Afghanistan Casualties

One year ago today, I provided my weekly report of U.S. military deaths in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

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Two Years Ago — August 3, 2009

Bill Clinton in North Korea

Two years ago today, on August 3, 2009, I reported that former president Bill Clinton made an unannounced visit to North Korea on a mission to win the release of jailed American reporters Laura Ling and Euna Lee, and to ease tensions over Pyongyang’s nuclear defiance.

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Three Years Ago — August 3, 2008

Campaign Against Michele Bachmann: Day 20

Three years ago today, on Sunday, August 3, 2008 — the 20th day of my 2008 campaign against incumbent U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District — I took a break from campaigning and posted a public service announcement to help draw attention to the sacrifice of National Guard citizen soldiers serving in Iraq and the families they leave behind.