Christians

It was a highly symbolic attack against Iraq’s Christian community: on October 31st, during an All Saints’ Day Mass, a group of al Qaeda gunmen attacked the church of Our Lady of Salvation in Baghdad, killing 46 and injuring dozens more. In the following days, some of the survivors were flown to France for medical attention. In Paris, we met Iraqi Christians, to hear eyewitness accounts from survivors of this atrocity who are afraid to return home and from a community that lives in fear.

Christian communities have existed in the Arab world for centuries and make up the religious minority in many countries, such as Jordan, the West Bank, Egypt and Iraq. Already fragile, these groups are increasingly subject to persecution. For many, life is becoming too hard in their native lands and the only option is to leave.

In November, a Pakistani woman was sentenced to death after being found guilty of blasphemy against Islam. Pressure groups say if executed, she'll be the first woman to be hanged for breaking the controversial law. Some critics of the law also say it's being abused to persecute non-Muslims, who make up just three percent of Pakistan's 167 million population.