Pope deplores more church bombings in Iraq

(July 14,2009):- : Pope Benedict XVI is decrying a new wave of attacks against churches in Iraq, urging authorities to spare no efforts in promoting peaceful coexistence. An explosion on Monday morning near Our Lady of Fatima Church in eastern Baghdad, marked the seventh bombing of Chaldean and Orthodox Churches since Saturday. The attacks have left at least four dead and 35 injured. The previous bombings took place at two churches in the western part of the city Saturday night, three churches Sunday afternoon, and one Sunday evening.
In a telegram signed by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Pope assured that he is praying "for a conversion of heart for the perpetrators of violence," and he urged authorities "to do everything possible to promote a just and peaceful coexistence for all of the sectors of the Iraqi population." The papal message was sent to Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, archbishop of Baghdad. The Holy Father, who arrived Monday to the northern Alps for his summer vacation, assured "his prayers and spiritual closeness to the Catholic and Orthodox communities of the Iraqi capital."