Ongoing violence against Christians in Iraq has produced an accelerated exodus of believers recently and numbering in the hundreds of thousands over the last 10 years, said Open Doors USA officials.
While the world’s attention has shifted to such countries as Syria, Egypt, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the organisation warns that the mass movement of Christians in Iraq continues unabated.
It estimates that the number of Christians before the Gulf War in 1991 was about one million.
“That number fell to an estimated 850,000 in 2003 at the start of the US-led invasion that ended the Saddam Hussein regime. Since then the numbers have plummeted," the organisation says.
“At the beginning of the summer, Open Doors estimated the number of Christians remaining in Iraq at 345,000. However, the number decreases every month.
“It is an estimation; some even think there are less Christians left in the country than that,” said one member of Open Doors.
Bassam Isho, 30, who was killed by unknown gunmen on October 1 is considered a martyr by Christians in Mosul. The gunmen entered the restaurant where Isho worked and opened fire, killing him instantly, the organisation reports.
During the same week, two more Christians were killed in Kirkuk. It is this type of violence, including the continuing harassment from Muslim extremists that has many Christians in Iraq seeking refuge.
"Iraqi Christians feel that the government fails to give them the security and freedom to worship in peace," Open Doors USA spokesman Jerry Dykstra told The Christian Post. "Countless Christians have been threatened, robbed, raped, kidnapped or killed."
"I think we need to pray that the Christians who have fled the country or live in the Kurdish area can come back home in the near future – with complete freedom of religion.
"We need to keep the pressure on the US government to speak out for minority faith groups in Iraq. Just because the US troops are leaving, does not mean we can ignore the ongoing violence and lack of protection of Christians inside Iraq."
