Europe 'Concerned' About Iraq's Christians
STRASBOURG, France (UPI) -- The European community is "very concerned" about the plight of members of the Christian minority in Iraq, the president of the European Parliament said. The last remaining members of the Christian community in Iraq, one of the oldest in the world, are leaving the country following an October attack on a church in Baghdad. President of the European Parliament Jerzy Buzek said it was time for the Iraqi government to make sure Christians in Iraq enjoy the same protection and status as Shiites and Sunnis. "The European Parliament is very concerned about these developments and is a strong defender of human rights, including freedom of religion" he said in his statement. "We monitor the situation closely and have adopted a number of resolutions to try to draw international attention to the plight of Christian minorities." The al-Qaida affiliated Islamic State of Iraq took responsibility for the October assault on the Christian church that left 58 people dead and 75 others wounded. A spate of attacks rocked the Christian community in the north of Iraq in 2008, displacing nearly half of the population. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in March thousands of Christians were displaced from Mosul in northern Iraq because of lingering violence.