Pope John Paul condemned today the bombing of two churches in Iraq, the latest in a series of attacks against the Christian community.
"I ask the Lord for the intercession of the Immaculate Virgin, so that the dear Iraqi people can finally come to know a time of reconciliation and peace," the 84-year-old Pope told thousands of pilgrims packed into St Peter's Square.
Gunmen attacked two churches in the tense northern Iraqi city of Mosul yesterday in the latest violence directed against one of Iraq's several religious and ethnic groups.
Members of the churches, one Armenian, the other Chaldean, said gunmen burst in, forced people to leave and set off explosions inside the buildings.
No one was hurt in the attacks. Iraq's 650,000 Christians - mostly Chaldeans, Assyrians and Catholics - comprise about three per cent of the population. Many have left Iraq and the Vatican fears more will go if the attacks go on.