Celebrations muted for Christians in Iraq (Rising religious extremism)

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/chitrib_ts/20031226/ts_chicagotrib/celebrationsmutedforchristiansiniraq&cid=2027&ncid=1480

BAGHDAD -- Even delayed until daylight, Christmas in Iraq (news - web sites) came without peace.



Fearing the lawlessness of Baghdad at night, thousands of Iraqi Christians postponed their traditional midnight services until dawn Thursday. But just before daybreak, the celebration was marred by a wave of rocket, mortar and grenade attacks on embassies, military bases, government ministries and a major hotel.


The rebel attacks struck a spiritual blow to Iraq's small Christian community, where the first Christmas since the fall of Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) was already muted by fears of rising religious extremism and the mounting toll taken by crime and shortages of gas and electricity.


Representing just 3 percent of Iraq's 24 million people, Iraqi Christians see themselves in a growing struggle to carve out their place in a nation dramatically redrawing the bounds of religious and ethnic power.


"I can't deny we're afraid. We just pray that God will help us get to the end of this dark period," said Rev. John Ayub Suleiman, a Syriac Orthodox priest at Baghdad's Church of Sts. Peter and Paul.

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[number6]

1. hey, are we liberated yet ??????

:eyes:

[pasadenaboy]

2. Why does the Christian right in this country

always pursue policies that hurt and destroy arab christians? We screw them in Israel, we support oppressive regimes in the middle east that are hostile to their christian populations, and now Iraq is much more dangerous for Iraqi christians.

God, I hate the Christian right. Not only are they evil, they are stupid on top of it. Aargghh!

[Cheswick2.0]

3. brilliant Bush you dipshit

Now people who once enjoyed relative freedom of religion have to fear reprisal from Muslim extremist sects. Has is occured to anyone in the BFEE that this once secular nation, where women did not have to wear muslim dress, will likely become a more hostile place for minorities?