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Iraq's Simultaneous bomb attacks killed 3 Christians By Robert Marus January 30, 2006 WASHINGTON (ABP) -- An apparently coordinated series of bomb attacks Jan. 29 targeted Iraq's Christian minority, killing three and injuring more. Bombs exploded within minutes of each other during Sunday services at two churches in the northern city of Kirkuk. At the city's Orthodox church, a car bomb killed one and wounded five. Minutes later, another bomb at a Chaldean Catholic church killed two and injured several. Attacks also targeted churches and the Vatican Embassy in Baghdad, but those attacks did not kill or injure anyone. Gen. Burhan Tayyib of the nation's police told the Washington Post the attacks were "a message from the terrorists [intended] to create sectarian strife." Estimates of the number of Christians in Iraq vary, but the nation has long had one of the largest Christian populations in the Middle East. Under Saddam Hussein's regime, they enjoyed a relatively high level of religious freedom. However, the political instability that has engulfed Iraq since American forces deposed Hussein in 2003 has led to an increase in anti-Christian attacks. Many Iraqi Christians have fled the country since Hussein's fall. Some remaining in the country have complained of being overlooked as U.S. officials attempt to rebuild the fractious nation and broker peace deals and power-sharing agreements among competing factions of Iraqi Muslims.   Another Report BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Archbishop Louis Sako of Kirkuk says the Christian community in Iraq is becoming "once again a Church of martyrs," after Sunday's car bomb attacks. Three people died and more than 20 were injured when bombers targeted six churches in Baghdad and the northern city of Kirkuk. Describing the "astonishing courage" of Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants alike, Archbishop Sako, 57, spoke of the defiance of his faithful, who "would not be pushed out of Iraq" by acts of aggression. After presiding at the funeral of 14-year-old Fadi Raad Elias, who died in the blasts, the archbishop described how people packed the Kirkuk cathedral to show "they were even more attached to Christianity than ever before." The prelate told the charity Aid to the Church in Need that his faithful were consoled by the many Muslims who attended the funeral, even Muslim women, which, he said, was very unusual. The archbishop said that he had given money from Aid to the Church in Need to grieving families and friends struggling to pay for the funeral and lacking essential needs. "They felt so grateful," he said. "For them, it was an important symbol of solidarity. It means they are not isolated." www.zenit.org ----

Who are the Christians of Iraq?  January = Canoon Kharaya  Iraq's Simultaneous bomb attacks killed 3 Christians Jan. 31, 06 British House of Commons Holds Hearing on Assyrian Genocide Jan. 31, 06 IRAQ: Sectarian tensions on the rise Jan. 31, 06 The World's Silence over Terrorizing Christians in Iraq Jan. 30, 06 Explosions target Christian churches in Iraq Jan. 30, 06 US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Comments about Iraq Jan. 28, 06 Insurgents Driven From Tal Afar in Northern Iraq: US Commander Jan. 27, 06 Saga of Assyrians in Iran comes to life in works by Turlock artist Jan.27, 06 Azerbaijani Soldiers Desecrate Armenian Christian Cemetery Jan. 25, 06 Iraq's WMD Secreted in Syria, Says Former Iraqi General Jan. 25. 06 The Armenians appreciate the Assyrian efforts for Seyfo's recognition. 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DOCUMENTARY ON ARMENIAN AND ASSYRIANS GENOCIDES, 1915 Jan. 23, 06 Kidnapping of the Assyrians in Iraq continues Jan. 23, 05 Praying in Jesus' Own Language Jan. 23, 06 Renowned Assyrian Scholar Erica Reiner Jan. 22, 06 How does Iran effect Assyrians in Turlock California? Jan. 21, 06 The Seyfo Seminar at the House of Commons Jan. 21, 06 ADO: An Apolitical Petty Bourgeois Organisation or a Mature Political Leadership? Jan. 21, 06 Ammo Baba: tied, eye-folded, beaten, and then robbed Jan. 20, 06 The Final Iraq's Election's Results! Jan. 20, 06 Tomb raiders Jan. 18, 06 The Assyrian Republican mayor , Man on the move  Jan. 18, 06 Donations For Allan Enwiyah Jan. 18, 06 Exhibition by the Assyrian artist Hannibal Alkhas Jan. 17, 06 Politics & Policies: Deconstructing Iraq Jan. 16, 06 Poly Sci Course on Assyrians Offered at UC, Berkeley Jan. 15, 06 Kurds focus on corruption in Kurdistan administration  Jan. 13, 06 Ecumenism and the Eucharist Jan. 13, 06 An Assyrian Coach of the Canadian Beaver Bruins hockey team Jan.12, 06 Turkey's massacre of the Assyrians and the Armenians Jan. 11, 06 New Iraqi Constitution May Limit Women's Freedoms Jan. 10, 06 The Boomerang Effect in Iraq: If 'Kurdistan', Why Not Assyria? Jan. 10, 06 Bishop's Report From the Assyrians of Iraq Jan. 9, 06 woman journalist abducted in Iraq, interpreter, killed jan. 9, 06 PanGlobal TV adds AssyriaSat to channel lineup Jan. 9, 06 Bishop Worrys About the future of the Christians in Iraq Jan. 7, 06 Major Terror Plot Against US Ignored By US Media Jan. 6, 06 Jan. 6, 06 U.S. troops deliver gifts to Iraq - 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