After surviving ISIS, Christian communities in Nineveh face a new threat as Kurdish Peshmerga forces and Iraqi government troops backed by Shiite militias square off across the province.

The United States last year called Islamic State's atrocities in the region constituted genocide.

A Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians on Nov. 26 initiates “Solidarity in Suffering,” a week of awareness and education that runs through Dec. 3.

The pope described the attack as a “wanton act of brutality directed at innocent civilians gathered in prayer.”

In Iraq, Reeta, 17, was used to being first in her class. For the last two years, in Turkey, she has not attended school.

Catholic leaders in Lebanon urged the international community to stop wars and bring peace to the Middle East.