In a horrific attack, over 40 Christian worshipers and seven Iraqi commandos were killed on Sunday in an attack on a Catholic church in the upscale Karrada neighbourhood in central Baghdad, reports the Washington Times.
About 20 minutes after Sunday Mass began at the Our Lady of Salvation Church, worshippers first heard shots and explosions. One of the priests, Father Wassem Sabeeh immediately began showing frightened worshippers into a fortified room in the rear of the church.
"We realized these explosions were close," said Bassam Sami, 21, one of the survivors of. "Father Wassem started pushing people inside the room."
After they had entered the church building, the silent attackers began executing people. "They were well trained," Sami said. "They didn't say anything. It was like someone had cut out their tongues."
Sabeeh, the priest, was among the first people executed after the assailants got inside. Another priest, Thaer Abdullah, was also killed.
Approximately 60 parishioners were clustered in the safe room, praying and crying, when one of the assailants threw a grenade inside, Sami said.
"There was unbelievable fear among the people," he said. "I cannot describe what we've been through."
After they realized that hostages had been executed, a team of U.S.-trained Iraqi commandos stormed into the church from all sides. At least five suicide bombers detonated explosives, killing seven of the troops.
The bloodshed that unfolded has horrified a city that has seen more than its fair share of atrocities. Many believe that al-Qaeda was responsible for the massacre, and indeed in a statement posted on the Internet early Monday, the Islamic State of Iraq, a front group for al-Qaeda in Iraq, asserted responsibility for the attack.