Iraqi Christians living in fear, say Baptists

As bombings increased recently in Baghdad, a Baptist pastor in the Iraqi capital told a European Baptist leader that Christians there are living in fear, especially after an attack October 31 at a Catholic church left nearly 60 dead.

Security forces stormed Our Lady of Salvation Chaldean Catholic Church, where more than 100 worshipers who had gathered for evening mass were being held hostage by gunmen demanding the release of al-Qaeda prisoners in Iraq and Egypt.

While there have been numerous attacks on Iraqi Christians since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, the October 31 incident was by far the bloodiest and will likely expedite the ongoing exodus of Christians of various denominations in Iraq. The nation's Christian community has dwindled from about 1 million to 600,000 or fewer since the war began.