International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that on March 9, 2018, a Christian family of three living in Baghdad was found dead in their home. An investigation showed that they had been stabbed to death the previous day by an armed group and their valuables were stolen. The victims are Dr. Hisham Shafiq al-Maskuni, his wife Shaza Malik, and his elderly mother Khairiya Dawood.
This is not an isolated tragedy. Attacks on Iraq’s Christian community have forced thousands from their homes. In particular, attacks on Christians in Baghdad have led so many to flee over the years that last summer eight churches closed their doors.
A doctor who worked in the same hospital as Dr. Hisham Shafiq told ICC in tears, “I cannot believe that he passed away in such a terrible way… I once heard Hisham say how people in his neighborhood are giving him hard times because they are trying to take his house and buy it. (I think) probably the killer was trying to threaten him and when Hisham recognized who he is, the killer decided to kill him and the rest of the family.”
This is the second attack against Christians in three weeks; both occurred within the same neighborhood of Baghdad. A spokesperson for Iraq’s Interior Ministry says that the individuals responsible for the deaths of Dr. Hisham Shafiq and his family were arrested on the evening of March 10.
Father Biyos Qasha of Baghdad…
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