State Department Figures
Making both national and international news, the US Department of State released their 2006 figures on global terrorism yesterday. The headlines caught my attention, because the figures are astounding. Over 20,000 people were killed as a result of global terrorism last year. I had no idea there were so many attacks, and so many victims!
It immediately brought to mind another number that most people don't know about–160,000, the estimated number of Christians martyred for their faith each year. Of course, in many countries, terrorism and persecution go hand in hand. Iraq, for instance, the biggest source of these terrorism deaths in 2006, has also been the site of a mass exodus of Christians fleeing the persecution.