It’s been more than a year since an attack on a church in Baghdad left 58 Christians dead, but Christians in the Iraqi capital still fear for their lives, says one church leader.

Fr Amir Jaje, Superior of the Dominican Order in Baghdad, told Aid to the Church in Need: “Living in Iraq means living in fear. There’s no feeling safe and during the last two or three weeks the situation has got worse, because of tensions among political parties.”

Despite police protection outside churches, congregations still feel anxious and fear infiltration by extremists, he says.

Extremists were behind the horrific attack on Our Lady of Salvation church in Baghdad in October last year. The 58 victims included Fr Jaje’s cousin, Fr Wasim Sabieh.

A new national security body was supposed to help heal the bitter rivalry between supporters of Nouri al-Maliki and rival Ayad Allawi’s Iraqiya bloc but it failed to get off the ground.

Now there are concerns that the political stalemate will tip Iraq towards civil war.

Fr Jaje warned that in times of political uncertainty, minorities “suffer the worst consequences”.

Despite the fear and uncertainty, Fr Jaje said Christians in Iraq had not fallen into despair.

“Our hope is like a small candle still burning in a dark tunnel,” he said.

Such is the degree of uncertainty that many people are choosing to leave Iraq rather than staying to see what happens.

“The next five or six years are going to be crucial to determine if Christians will stay in the country,” he said.

Many of those who already left headed to Europe, the USA, or neighbouring countries like Syria and Lebanon.

Some moved to northern Iraq, which has been relatively safer for Iraqi Christians. However many of them have returned, says Fr Jaje, because they cannot find work or adjust to the Kurdish language.

Estimates vary, but it is believed that the number of Christians living in Iraq has fallen from around 1.5 million prior to the 2003 US-led invasion to less than 500,000 today.

Christian Today