Five churches were bombed in Baghdad in a coordinated attack.
The church of Saint Joseph in the west of the Iraqi capital was hit at about 4:00 am (0100 GMT).
Twenty minutes later, another blast ripped through the streets at another Saint Joseph church, in Dora, southern Baghdad. After another 20 minutes, Saint Paul’s church was struck in the same area.
At 4:50 am, the Roman Catholic St. George church in the central district of Karrada was rocked by a blast and engulfed in flames, leaving the wood-built sanctuary completely charred.
A fifth explosion occurred about an hour later at Saint Thomas church in Mansour, to the west.
An artillery shell, believed to be intended for the church, was fired into a car park between a hotel and Saint George’s Anglican Church.