Al-Qaeda in Iraq: 'All Christians are Legitimate Targets'
Friday, 5 November 2010
Christians across the Middle East were put on notice Wednesday by the Islamic State of Iraq – better known as the Iraqi branch of the international al-Qaeda terrorist group – that they are now “legitimate targets.”
The group said in a statement that its deadline for the release of Muslim women it claims are imprisoned by Egyptian Coptic churches had expired.
“The Ministry of War of Islamic State of Iraq declares that all the centers, organizations and bodies of Christian leaders and followers have become legitimate targets by the Mujahedeens, wherever our hands will reach them.”
According to CNN, there have been widespread rumors of Coptic women in Egypt who were allegedly detained by the church after they converted to Islam, in the hopes of convincing or compelling them to return to their original faith.
Neither the Interior Ministry of Egypt nor any representatives of the Coptic Church in Cairo were willing to comment on the issue.
Security has been stepped up around the country in Egypt, especially around the nation’s churches and for the head of the Coptic Church, Pope Shenouda III. Although 90 percent of Egyptians are Muslim, approximately nine percent are Coptic Christians.
On Sunday, the Islamic State of Iraq attacked a Catholic church during Mass in downtown Baghdad in the deadliest siege ever recorded against the country’s Christian population.
The terrorists held dozens of people hostage for hours. By the time the standoff had ended, 58 were dead and 75 others were wounded, including many women and children.
The terrorists announced they were giving the Coptic Church 48 hours to release the women it said had converted to Islam, and demanded the release of al-Qaeda-linked prisoners being held in Iraqi jails.
Baghdad Terror Death Toll Climbs
Meanwhile, Iraqi police and medical workers said the death toll in Baghdad following a wave of al-Qaeda terror attacks on Tuesday has climbed to 91, with at least 350 more wounded.
Explosions rocked the Iraqi capital in at least 17 neighborhoods, most of them in Shi’ite communities according to various media reports. Terrorists used two roadside bombs, 14 car bombs and a number of mortar attacks. U.S. military spokesman Lt.-Col. Eric Bloom said the style of the attacks was typical of al-Qaeda in Iraq.
On Monday, the Iraqi government closed the Cairo-based Al-Baghdadiya satellite TV offices in Baghdad and Basra, a move that earned criticism from the Committee to Protect Journalists.
The Iraqi government released a statement saying the station was closed in response to broadcasting “incitement to violence,” after the attackers were allowed to use the channel to broadcast their demands. The statement added that the Egyptian satellite channel’s coverage of the terrorist siege “was not objective, creating a threat to the military operation by providing attackers with information about ongoing operations to rescue the hostages.”
The Committee to Protect Journalists in response accused authorities of using the incident as a pretext to close the station, because the channel had previously provided an outlet with which to criticize the Iraqi government.
Iraqi lawmakers have convened only once since the country’s elections on March 7. Following an order by the Iraqi High Court ordering the parliament to reconvene, acting speaker Fouad Massoum called the 325 lawmakers to a second session on Monday -- in order to elect his successor.
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