Italy's church asks EU to aid "hunted" Christians

Italy's Roman Catholic bishops urged the European Union to treat the persecution of Christians overseas as a humanitarian emergency after deadly attacks on Christian churches and homes in India.

The bishops' newspaper Avvenire used a front-page editorial to demand that violence against Christians must be on the agenda of an upcoming summit between the EU and India.

It warned of the growth of "Christianophobia" in many parts of the world, which it termed "the new anti-semitism of today" and equated with the spread of "Islamophobia" in the West.

Hailing the US government's firm stance on the violence in India, the paper of the Italian Bishops' Conference said Europe "must urgently apply the right of humanitarian assistance to the relationship beteween the new and the old democracies".

The article said Christians were also persecuted in Turkey, the Palestine territories, Iraq, Indonesia and North Africa.

"Persecution is spreading like oil on water, the number of martyrs continues to grow in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, and hunting down Christians is a mad and bloody idea that finds more and more followers," the paper said.

The Italian government was quick to express its concern at violence in India's eastern Orissa district which erupted in late August, when Hindus angry at the murder of a religious leader blamed local Christians communities and attacked them.

About 16 people, mostly Christians, died in the ensuing violence and thousands of Christians fled their homes.