Church siege death toll rises to 52

The death toll from the bloody siege of a Baghdad church rose to 52 today, with dozens more injured, Iraqi officials said.

The incident began at dusk yesterday when militants wearing suicide vests and armed with grenades attacked the Iraqi stock exchange and then entered the nearby Our Lady of Deliverance church – one of Baghdad’s main Catholic places of worship – taking about 120 Christians hostage.

Iraqi forces stormed the church after a tense hours-long stand-off, freeing the hostages. It was not immediately clear whether the hostages died at the hands of the attackers or during the rescue.

Officials said at least one priest and nine policemen were among the dead. Many of the wounded were women.

The casualty information came from police and officials at hospitals where the dead and wounded were taken.

There were conflicting accounts about the number of attackers involved in the assault, with Baghdad military spokesman Major General Qassim al-Moussawi saying last night that security forces killed eight, while the US military said between five and seven died.

Two police officers at the scene, however, said only three attackers were killed and another seven arrested afterwards.

A cryptically worded statement posted on a militant website allegedly by the Islamic State of Iraq late yesterday appeared to claim responsibility for the attack.

The group, which is linked to al Qaida in Iraq, said it would “exterminate Iraqi Christians” if Muslim women were not freed within 48 hours from churches in Egypt.

Iraqi Christians, who have been frequent targets for Sunni insurgents, have left in droves since the 2003 US-led war.