From the Family Research Council:
Two Christian brothers were gunned down on Monday as they were being led in chains from a Pakistani courthouse. The two were on trial for blasphemy against Islam. This latest incident once again highlights the intense persecution of Christians in the Middle East, persecution that is taking place with the tacit support of the government. This is happening under the very government that the U.S. helped establish in Iraq.
FRC senior staff met with several Iraqi Christian leaders (Catholic, Protestant, and Assyrian Orthodox) to learn more about the very troubling situation facing Christians in their country. Clearly, the situation has deteriorated for Christians since the fall of Saddam. Their population of over 1.1 million prior to U.S. military intervention in 2003 is now down to around 400,000 and decreasing daily. Many are having difficulty finding employment and sometimes experience active persecution from Muslim extremists. In recent months, conditions for Iraqi Christians have gotten so severe that many have fled to other countries for fairer treatment, and of the Iraqi Christian refugees who have found their way to the U.S., many are struggling financially.
FRC is urging the U.S. government to call upon the governments in these Islamic countries to recognize the right to religious freedom that even the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights acknowledges. This is especially important in Iraq where our young men and women have shed their blood to bring freedom to all Iraqi citizens. A number of U.S. Congress members have recognized the importance of saving the Christian communities of Iraq and have taken action toward this end, including Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Frank Wolf (R-Va.), Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) and Chris Smith (R-N.J.). Please write Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to urge her to work with them and fight for Iraq 's Christians. It is critical that the investment of U.S. resources and troops in Iraq not end with the elimination of Iraq 's Christian communities.