Bomb attacks on Christians in Baghdad kill 37

Militants in Iraq targeted Christians in two separate bomb attacks in Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 37 people, officials said.

In one attack, a car bomb went off near a church during Christmas Mass in Baghdad’s southern Dora neighborhood, killing at least 26 people and wounding 38, a police officer told the Associated Press.

A little bit earlier, a bomb ripped through an outdoor market in the nearby Christian section of Athorien, killing 11 people and wounding 21, the officer added.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks, but Iraq’s Christian community, which is estimated to number about 400,000 to 600,000 people, has often been targeted by Islamist extremists.

A medical official confirmed the casualty figures. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the media, Reuters reported.

The Christmas Day attacks brought the total number of people killed so far this month in Iraq to 441. According to U.N. estimates, more than 8,000 people have been killed since the start of the year.