christian aguilar. [ applause ] >> reporter: christian, scholar that he was, intent on pursuing pre-medgot admitted to the selective university of florida in gainesville. was christian happy when his acceptance came through? >> oh, he was so happy. he was ecstatic. >> reporter: and though all of three friends wanted to be gators, had u of f as a top choice school, only christian got in. erika was headed to a different college in gainesville, santa fe, while pedro planned to take classes near home in miami. and as graduation neared, more life decisions. erika broke it off with pedro. she didn't want a long-distance relationship. and after all, they were just 18-years-old, and the big wide world was ahead of them both. >> i wanted him to find someone and fall in love with them, and you know, live a normal life. i just didn't think he was the one for me. >> reporter: they were barely unpacked, classes just starting, when a sudden change of plans. pedro didn't want to be left behind in miami after all. as the fall semester started, he showed up in gainesville, as his friend robert remembere

of orthodox christians that you see in rome, certainly not to the orthodox version of christians. these are referred to sometimes as those that believe that jesus only had a singular niche or be it only human or only divine who rejected the notion of the trinity and so for the prophet mohammed, he would have been very familiar with this one particular version of christian thoughts. just as he would have been extremely familiar with judaism were also many and quite successful and well established. all of this is to say that the prophet mohammed was born and grew up in a world steeped in jewish and christiathe jewish an thoughts and jewish and christian mythology. there's a reason why when you read the koran when it sometimes restates the great stories of the hebrew scriptures be it stories about jacob or joseph or moses or abraham it often begins the story is with the word recall or remember. recall when moses received the commandments, remember what happened to joseph when he fled from his brothers. the reason for that is quite simple. the koran is repeating stories that it assume

of christianity.both right and they're both wrong. so, if you have muslims who say, antithetical to islam, they're right. if you have mulls hims who say democracy is absolutely compatible with islam, they're right. so, stop saying islam is this or that. christianity is this or that. there is no such thing as this or that when it comes to religion. it's always what an individual says it is. >> host: reza aslan in zealot, this the dedication for my wife, jessica jackley, and the entire jackley clan, whose love and acceptance have taught me more about jesus than all my years of research and study. >> guest: anybody who saw that famously uncomfortable fox interview knows my wife is a christian, as is my mother -- i'm the one who converted my mother to christianity and is a very devout christian, and my wife and i have twin boys that we joke are undeclared but who will grow up in all great religious traditions and will decide for themselves what they want to believe. the reason i made that dedication is be

christian's -- christian's gone. mean, now i'm starting to shake, and it was like, this sense of -- of relief and at the same time, this sense of overwhelming pain. >> reporter: when we come back, lights, camera and courtroom action. to prove how the young freshman taught himself murder 101. >>> as the suspicion and evidence mounts tonight, our question, have you ever been involved with someone that can't let go? use #2020. we'll be right back. [ dog barks ] ♪ [ male announcer ] imagine the cars we drive... being able to see so clearly... to respond so intelligently and so quickly, they can help protect us from a world of unseen danger. it's the stuff of science fiction... minus the fiction. and it is mercedes-benz... today. see your authorized dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services. see a deep ache all over.r for exceptional offers my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia thought to be the result of overactive nerves that cause chronic, widespread pain. lyrica is believed to calm these

and have threatened him because he is a christian. but is he a christian convert. so he is converted from islam and also that, you know, because he is a dual american iranian citizen. it's intense in that prison. there is additional threats and we are really concerned about his well-being. >> jay, is it true that he is in prison for his beliefs? is that why the iranians have him? that's absolutely correct, greta. we have seen the documents. we have talked to the iranian prison. is he in prison because of his faith. they will say it's for national security reasons. but under the iranian revolutionary guard someone of a different faith. you have got it take it as have you been reporting so well tonight, this evening, the fact of the matter is a group like isis which sole intent is destruction. so concerned about isis they have arrested isis agents with iranian dissent and put them in prison. is he in jail for one reason and one reason only. that is because is he a christian there are no other real charges. they say national security because of his faith. they don't e

what i am describing will sound very familiar to christians because it is called christianity.i think really surprises christian to learn is in a lifetime if these two men, james and paul, paul was an outcast. he was marginalized. he was safe wrench figure. this version of christianity that he was preaching was heterodox to say the least. indeed on numerous occasions, paul with settlement to jerusalem to answer for his heretical teachings about christianity and to answer directly to james. you know, as i sometimes joke, you can't win an argument with james. how do you win an argument with a flesh and blood brother of jesus? what are you going to say that is going to be a man who can say i've talked with jesus and that's not what he meant. you cannot win an argument against the brother of jesus. so paul lost that argument. paul dies in the year 626. james dies in the year 62. at that point as i say, paul's views are the minority view to say the least. but here is the difference between paul and james. james, like his brother, jesus, was an uneducated, illiterate peasant from the

and then, curiously, he calls christian for help. >> pedro calls christian on a pay phone and he's likei'm really depressed. and i was wondering if we can talk, you know, so maybe you can give me advice about how to deal with this, you know, depression. >> reporter: did he ask you if he should go, what you thought? >> we were a little concerned, that maybe he would try to fight him, or something of that sense, but you know, we talked about it, you know, you're going to meet on u.f. campus. you're going to be fine. >> reporter: they met at "the hub" -- the college bookstore here at the heart of this throbbing campus of the university of florida. and what happens soon after will change three lives forever. >> i started calling him. i started texting him. he was not answering. i was like, well, i have to do something. >> reporter: when "2020" continues. garnier anti-sun damage. a different daily moisturizer. different, because it helps correct signs of past damage, even dark spots. [ male announcer ] clinically tested with vitamin c, it corrects uneven tone and reduces dark spots. even tho

i think it's the first time in history of christianity there are no christians in mosul for example.mosul is a very christian heartland. one of the priests from mosul said today for the first time in 1600 years there have been no mass today. it is actually horrendous. fighting from the sky, isis -- >> what is? >> sorry. >> what is then? if the air strikes aren't helping? >> the air strikes are helping contain isis. but we need to be able to move the christian community. need to be able to get for them to be allow ed in kyrgyzstan an the national community to help with the christian and then help them get down to iraq. this is a major, major crisis. where we need relief and. >> i know the answer you are going to give but you yourself have been under great threat in iraq. you have stayed throughout. are you going to stay? >> i will not leave here until the last of my people is gone. i don't just mean by congregation but all of the christians in this land. i'm not going until the last is gone. >> cannon andrew white, our thanks to you for bringing us that terrible news but for making th

well i think i'm very concerned about the christians in the middle east. there were a great number of christians who managed to survive for centuries and centuries until we began to take aggressive action towards different countries in the mideast. we have had a tremendous loss of christians in iraq we we almost had a tremendous loss in egypt until fortunately president el-sisi took over and he is very much a protector of the christians there. in syria. president assad and his father before him have both been steadfast protectors of the christian community and. so by by reinforcing what his army did to rescue the christians this was this was my way of trying to to reinforce those are first because the christians are under enormous pressure in the middle east today. while the u.s. has a longstanding record of supporting countries at that uphold human rights how do you expect the u.s. to really support the assad regime considering it has a pretty dire human rights record. well the the human rights record is. it's a combination of of truth meth and propaganda

he has not uttered the word christian. now suddenly throwses it in with yazidis, it i wonderful we're helping them and doing airdrops to then. we're not doing any airdrops to christians refugees in the kurdish region who, you know, congressman wolf has been taken to the floor, i think seven days in a row now pleading with the administration please help these people. they need humanitarian aid. they need drinking water. they have nothing. they have lost their homes. they have lost everything. the white house has done nothing, said nothing. the president goes on in there and goes into quite a lost detail about the yazidis, never gets into specifics about christians. unbelievable. he has no right to invoke humanitarianism because he is not a humanitarian president. humanitarian president does not sit quietly by while hundreds of thousands of christians in iraq, forget about the rest of the middle east what is going on, doesn't say a word. not a word. >> interesting to get your viewpoint on that. speaker boehner echoed the sam

is this christian genocide? >> the brutality is unprecedented. this is a full blown christian genocide. men are being massacred. women are being raped. children are being beheaded. they're trying to wipe off christianity from the entire middle east. >> and when you say this, how are you familiar with what is going on there? you're actually speaking to people over there? >> sure, every day we're receiving hundreds of phone calls from americans that have family members in iraq. and they've woen up with the red death stamp of isis in their home. >> hold on, mark. let's talk about the red death stamp of isis. christians are given an option, either convert or die. and their homes are marked with this. it almost looks like a smiley face. what is that? >> it's reminiscent of the holocaust. the ultimatum is convert, pay a tax or death by the sword. >> all right, and what do they doo? go back to the home and how do they find out what the decision is? >> well, they fled their homes and their families are wanting just a chance to live and they're up north r

future of christians is uncertain. if practical solutions are not realized, then the number of christians will go down. >> reporter: hundreds of iraqi christians carrying banners and chanting slogans recently marched to the u.n. office in urbil demanding a stop to what they saw the genocide targeting their faith. >> translator: this is a crime against iraq. christians and muslims, we live together as brothers for a long time. we just want the peace and love. >> reporter: from baghdad to washington, isis's persecutions of christians has been internationally condemned. >> this humanitarian situation is extremely serious and heart-breaking particularly when it comes to christian minorities and other vulnerable groups. >> reporter: but little is being done. and iraqi christians who have said mass in mosul for more than 1800 years are now gone, forced to observe their faith elsewhere now. michael holmes, cnn. >> all right. we've talked a lot lately about the ebola virus and that crisis. in a way it's kind of overshadowed an

the christians there are under attack. the refugees of the christian my jort yazidi. they see them as devil worshippers, will execute them if they don't convert to islam. while we're sending in food and water, this is a short-term fix. how can these people be helped in the long term? >> your readers are accurate in saying we had a long-term commitment in south korea, long-term commitment during the cold war in terms of actually helping the dispossessed internally displaced refugees. we have to understands that the humanitarian crisis is not the problem. it is a symptom of the problem. the problem is the existence of the islamic state. the islamic state thrives in chaos. they have no interest in reducing the amount of humanitarian crisis or few gees. the short-term solution, yes, provide food, water, medical supplies, all about that. but the long-term solution has to be the destruction of isis. as long as we have a religious fundamentalist radical jihadi state, it there will be no end to the humanitarian crises this spawns. the short-term answer, help the refugees. the

country, some 100 christians said to be on the run as we speak. churches and shrines were destroyed, they gave the automateultimatum to them, convo islam or die. christians are said to face some sort of hostility in 111 countries around the world. in another report number christians killed because of their faith doubled last year over the year before. nine of the top 10 most dangerous countries for christians are in muslim majority countries. in egypt for example worshipers are being gunned down, churches burned down especially last year as president of muslim brotherhood leader mohammed marcy. nigeria very dangerous place for christians of all ages. 270 school children captured by the islamic group where they were mainly christian and were mainly forced to convert to the islam faith. in sudan watching with pope francis applied a young woman sentenced to death for converting to christianity from islam now has been released and is now in the states. pope francis has called on prayers around the world for the christians and all those caught in the c

christianity is like you said it's about love god loves all people he loves atheists he loves christians non christians buddhist muslims doesn't matter and i think so often we did the movie god's not dead and everybody thinks that you know but the trailer up all the atheists came out and said how terrible people we were and you know and and and picketed and all that kind of stuff but i think it's the christianity is about love jesus loves us that's the whole just like the song is god loves us i'm always amazed when i hear that because i think that there's no one who talks more about hell in either the old or new testaments and jesus so it's like that among us i mean it seems to me that this you know cosmic saddam hussein this guy who wants to if you do something like it's not as if he just tortures you for for a few years it's all eternity that's it's the to me to be loved by all of you will agree gus the hardest thing to discuss is faith because if someone has faith. you're going to talk i'm out of having faith it's true but you know in this day and it just seems like there's kind of th

the christian faith must be, a quiet and kind of secret discipline. must now profess our faith through prayer and righteous action alone. fascinating stuff. plea

whole towns are now devoid of their christian inhabitants. now, our enemies have become emboldened because of you. al qaeda believes they won the war with iraq and we lost it. problem? you make political decisions and mail fail to assess future danger and you're reactive. then, you're not effective. if ever there were a question, the world now sees the consequences of an america with an inexperienced, disengaged president. so what is our foreign policy? because no one knows. i have an idea. your limited air strikes are a joke. they've taken out a handful of weapons and terrorists. what you need to do is ramp it up. you need a strategy and a goal. no matter how long it takes a day, week, year or more you have to have stamina to see it through. i told what you to do two months ago. my resolutions? air strikes bomb them. bomb them, keep bombing them, bomb them again, and again. and i don't care how long it takes. just take out isis. take out their convoys and take out those troops. it is true americans are war weary. too many of us have loved on

bonhoeffer i did this is not christian. they argued in germany there is no longer any life except with the fuhrer. the german christians had waged a seven year campaign to make the churches save for the reich, winning all the parishioners and all the church people to the nazi cause. what a pity for him that hitler no longer cared about the church. by 1939 most high-ranking members of the regime, beginning with the fuhrer himself, were of the mind that christianity was no different from judaism in its enfeebling affects on the folk. the religion of jesus, a jew after all, was at last a malignant, according influence. bonhoeffer had long argued christianity and judaism were inseparable. in the end the nazis would agree, although with a grotesquely different purpose. the anti-semitic journal ran up cartoon of a jewish man raising the head of a christian cleric over his head. there is no question of his race. he has an engine or attenuated nose and his throat was naked except for a crest with the star of david. he also has clov

there are only 300-400,000 christians left because of the mass exodus.hole ethnic religious group being extinct. you started the last segment with a beautiful baby who is 40 days old. usually in the christian faith, you celebrate the life ahead for that particular choiled. right now, this family and choiled are preparing for death. we are a very grave crisis. we're in the mlings war. -- religious war. i'm going to leave the war part in terms of how we go about it to our militaristic leaders. >> a fair point, ambassador. rick, you are a military guy. here's what i don't understand, maybe you can explain it to me. there's a few dozen u.s. military personnel in irbil right now t there's a few dozen u.s. diplomatic personnel in irbil right now. he's got to launch strikes to protect them. why not simply evacuate them from the zone? >> i think it would send the wrong message and right now it's very important that we stand with our iraqi allies and pulling those people out after we've just sent them up there would send the wrong message to the iraqi government

future of christians is uncertain. if practical solutions are not realized then the number of christians will go down. [ chanting ] >> reporter: hundreds of iraqi christians carrying banners and chanting slogans recently marched to the u.n. office in irbil demanding a stop to what they call the genocide targeting their faith. [ speaking a foreign language ] >> translator: this is a crime against iraq. christians and muslim, we live together as brothers for a long time. we just want the peace and love. >> reporter: from baghdad to washington, isis' persecution of christians has been internationally condemned. >> this humanitarian situation is extremely serious and it is heartbreaking particularly when it comes to the christian minorities and other vulnerable groups. ♪ >> reporter: but little is being done and iraqi christians who have said mass in mosul for more than 1800 years are now gone forced to observe their faith elsewhere now. michael holmes, cnn. >> and thanks for watching. i'm rosemary church. >> and i'm errol

iraq's largest christian town has now been overrun by islamist fighters, tens of thousands of christians who live there have been forced to flee into the mountains. so joining me now, mark hertling, former u.s. army commander of the iraqi city of najah and elise, let me begin with you. you're talking to your sources here as we're learning from what's happening in washington. talk to me about the time line for these emergency, these humanitarian air drops and possible air strikes. >> well, brooke, the president has been meeting with his national security team all morning and into the afternoon, trying to decide exactly how the u.s. could help these some 40,000 yezidis -- these minority christian sect in the north, basically escape from a mountaintop. they were out of food, out of water. they need shelter. a lot of people have died from the heat. and the discussion now is how can the u.s. best help them. so we're told that they are a range of options. the president is considering from air dropping supplies, food, water, medicine, shelter, to perhaps providing some kind of humanitarian corr

orthodox christian doesn't matter.e people must be so disappointed. >> the people are disappointed unfortunately. right now you and i understand it. terrorists are the ones that are causing these problems. >> how do we stop them? >> first of all we need to make them hear our voice. those groups that are supporting and funding our terrorists to stop funding them, please. we ask that you stop hunting them -- funding them, please. >> who is funding them? >> i don't know. >> isis is taking over the banks. >> they took over the banks and took all of the moneys off these people especially the christians and everything they have. they not only took their money, they not only took their money but they made them leave their homes. got to the borders with the clothes on their back and nothing else was damaged than a too dollars cash. they made them sign away the deeds to their houses. >> they accept their villages and montessouris we have there and people's homes that are our own christians. >> you know something that this destr

this is just the latest in christians being persecuted around the world. >> reporter: the christians around the world are being targeted according to one expert by islamist extremists but nowhere is it more evident than in iraq. isis drove 100,000 christians. they are on the run and panicked. isis gave the ultimatum to convert to islam or die. christian homes have been targeted by militants. isis is active next door in syria. 1,200 christians killed there last year. arthel: , a horrible picture. >> reporter: according to the open doors organization says being a christian around the world is become more and more dangerous. they are said to face hostilities in nine out of the 11 countries. and in egypt coptic christians are being targeted. churches burneddown down, especially since the removal of mow whommed a morsi. 278 school children kidnapped by the boko haram group were mainly christian and forced to convert to islam. a woman who converted to christianity was sentenced to death. pope francis weighing in on the latest crisis in iraq and calling on people from around the world to pr

now it's syrian christians. the world should battle against one of the most ambitious, ruthless terror groups ever. i don't think these pinprick strikes of the president are going to make a lot of a difference. mark? >> thank you for having me. this is a full blown genocide. men are being massacred, women are being raped and children are being beheaded. we have 400,000 christians being displaced from their homes, they don't have food, diapers. we have to make sure america stands as the light of the world. right now, france is leading the way by offering asylum to these folks. in a couple days, i'm going to go to the united nations to ask for three things. i'm going to ask the u.n. to recognize this as a genocide, crimes against humanity, and ask them to recognize this as a systematic wiping off of the oldest christians in the history of the world. these are -- >> they're beheading children and putting their heads on a stick to insight fear into the hearts of everybody? >> these are the most horrific atrocities t

chip reid and george christian, cbs news, washington. >> pelley: one great cameraman.ening news. for all of us at cbs news all around the world, good night. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >>> we have the latest on everything that is happening in hollywood. here's what's coming up on the show tonight. >> george and amal just applied for a marriage certificate. s wedding is happening soon. >> one thing that popped right out at you about the announcement. >> they filed in london. so why are they tying the knot in italy? will there be two ceremonies? >> then sherri shepherd says good-bye to "the view." >> the frantic search to find a replacement. nine women doing chemistry tests to see who can get along with rosie. >> celebrity feud number 12. line them up, ladies and gentlemen. >> tv's ultimate reality show. it's like "the hunger games" in spanx. what we know about the front-runner. >> abc is blowing the show up in a way they never have before. >> also tonight, star summer baby watch.

and the iraqi christians who have been forced to flee their villages in the region. we are deeply concerned about reports that isil has abducted as many as several hundred girls from these vulnerable communities. we're working intensively with the government of iraq, the iraqi security forces and the kurdish authorities in the immediate area to support their efforts to address the humanitarian situation in sinjar. >> and in terms of what the u.s. might be able to do to stop this, is the president considering along the lines of humanitarian aid? might he consider going as far as airstrikes against isil to address this? >> well, josh, first and foremost, as i mentioned, iraqi authorities and kurdish authorities are focused on this very specific threat to the nation of iraq and to the vulnerable populations that live in these areas. so the united states government as well as the united states military is supporting the ongoing efforts of the iraqi officials and kurdish officials to address this urgent humanitarian crisis that exists. it is a situation that we are deeply

as you speak christians are being beheaded all over the middle east because they are christians.those carrying out this mass murder are doing so in the name of islam. yet you continue to say and do absolutely nothing. well, about these unspeakable crimes so do christian lives mean so little to you? joining me now -- and also organized the protest including the one outside the white house, and old friend of the program, bill donahue. >> thank you for having us. >> you went to the white house. you protested. we know what's happening in iraq, convert to islam, pay a tax or die. explain what you're hearing from all the people you're talking to. >> yes. well, basically we have been crying. we have been begging. we are dying. christians including -- we are facing extinction, literally. we are the oldest christians in the world. we don't currently have the support of our pope. and our president including all the world leaders, they should all be holding hands. they should be hand-in-hand to defend the oldest christians in the world. without christians in that area, we're full of peace.

christians withpoc states who say it is time to step up. >> we'll leave it there.nks so much for being with me. i'll be right back. (vo) get ready! fancy feast broths. they're irresistabowl... completely unbelievabowl... totally delectabowl. real silky smooth or creamy broths. everything she's been waiting for. carefully crafted with real seafood, real veggies, and never any by-products or fillers. wow! being a cat just got more enjoyabowl. fancy feast broths. wow served daily. i'm j-e-f-f and i have copd. i'm l-i-s-a and i have copd, but i don't want my breathing problems to get in the way of hosting my book club. that's why i asked my doctor about b-r-e-o. once-daily breo ellipta helps increase airflow from the lungs for a full 24 hours. and breo helps reduce symptom flare-ups that last several days and require oral steroids, antibiotics, or hospital stay. breo is not for asthma. breo contains a type of medicine that increases risk of death in people with asthma. it is not known if this risk is increased in copd. breo won't replace rescue inhalers for sudden copd

two, what happens if other groups including iraqi christians come under threat? will the u.s.escue them as well. finally what type of military support will the u.s. offer to iraqi forces, not only to stop isis advances but to push back, to gain background. that's still an open question. christi and victor. >> jim sciutto, thank you very much. >>> president obama speaking with "the new york times'" tom freeman, said that iraqis missed the chance at that kind of cooperation. >> they squandered an opportunity. and i've been, i think, pretty clear, about the fact that had the shia majority seized the opportunity to reach out to the sunnis and the kurds in a more effective way passed legislation like de-baathification would have made a difference, the flip side if we can done exactly what we did and 10,000 troops there, that would not have prevented the problem. the difference is we would have had 10,000 troops in the middle of this chaos as opposed to have ago a much more limited number. >> with christians running for their lives in iraq, pope francis is sending a personal envoy t

we do not differentiate, not even now. >> christian animals loan spiritual leaders -- christian and muslim spirit to leaders walk side-by-side. >> the world bank has pledged $200 million to help contain the ebola epidemic in west africa. the funds will go to help library and sierra leone radel the spread of the deadly virus. more than 900 people have died. >> several hospitals unexpectedly shut down on monday. staff have become so afraid of contract the ebola virus that they have stopped turning up for work and they say they do not have the necessary equipment to protect them selves from the infection. ebola is one of the topics on the agenda at the first ever u.s. africa summit in washington. >> barack obama is hosting nearly 50 african heads of state for a landmark three-day summit in the u.s. capital. the u.s. is committing $14 billion in investments in africa. >> a main themes of the summer our security -- some at our security and economic cooperation. >> the message is that africa should be viewed as a business partner, not as a charity case. >> when i got here is a young man, as a yo

is considered now a genocide, and warning christians to convert to islam or die. this is america's news headquarters, the u.s. operation also serving as a humanitarian mission, airplanes developing food and water or for the estimated 40,000 yisidis. it comes as president obama warned the u.s. the response there in that country would be, quote, a long-term project. doug mcelway is live in washington with more. >> president obama said in 2011 that iraq was sovereign, stable. today he's offering air strikes there. the strikes happened at 9:00 this morning eastern time. the president is catching it from all sides, from his war weary base that wants nothing to do with his military actions, to his hawkish critics who says he's doing too little too late. >> it's clearly very ineffective to say the least, the president made it clear that this was to avert the humanitarian crisis that they were taking these actions and to protect american military personnel, that is simply a very narrow and focused approach to a problem which is metastasizing as we speak. >> the president'

christians. in israel, islamic jihad teamed up with hamas and is firing rockets at innocent israelis. iran, pakistan, syria, radical islam is a jihad against christianity and anyone who doesn't worship the way they do. there's a common denominator, they're islamic, they're radical, they're extremists and purely intall rantinoleranintol. check out this video who says they will not stop until they raise the flag of mohammed in the white house. really? our white house? i've been pushing back on getting involved in conflicts that aren't ours. this persecution of christians and the new cry of we will not stop until we raise the flag of mohammed at the white house changes everything. you want a holy war? we'll give you one. it just may be time to unleash hell on radical islam. don't worry, radical jihadists, your 72 virgins await. >> jeff flock here,lp coming to you from the front seatq of the q!%m" the future of how we get where we're going. there'se1çó marcus ambrose.jn it's coming fast. look, guys,

it's packed with refugees, iraqi christians. amid this discussion, let's just show you what's at stake right now. this is a 40-day-old jeshua. he is one of an estimated 100,000 iraqi christians displaced people, refugees, with his mother itlas, and 2-year-old sister here. they have fled their home in the last 48 hours, and have spent their second night in this church. this is just one family. we're going to try to spin around and show you a little bit of the scene here. there are hundreds of people who have been sleeping in the pews of this church, carol. this is of course a highly symbolic scene. we are in a place of worship. in this part of iraqi kurdistan i have been in a youth center full of thousands of iraqi christians. in the yard of this church, there are more thousands of iraqi christians. everybody tells the same story, that the kurdish peshmerga militia withdrew from their towns, a town called parakush, a town called hamdaniya and after they withdrew, these families literally had minutes to pack whatever they could, f

pope francis has urged an urgent appeal for iraqi christians.called for world powers to offer humanitarian aid for those who have been driven from their homes. now, many christians are fleeing the advance of isis militants. >> it is the vatican's second appeal in as many weeks. pope francis has also appointed a cardinal as his personal envoy to iraq. there is an estimated 500,000 christians in iraq. >> now, in new delhi a shia group says it is outraged by isis attacks on shia shrines in iraq. >> many say they want to organize, go to iraq and fight. sunima udas reports. >> reporter: on this holy day shiite muslims in india pray for their community in iraq, scrambling to fight the extremist sunni group islamic state in iraq and syria, or isis. hundreds have died. several cities occupied. images of extreme brutality beamed across the world. >> images, the videos are simply heartbreaking. >> reporter: isis leaders have vowed to destroy all shiite shrines, including the most revered karbala. fearing the worst, india's largest shiite community is now

future of christians is uncertain if practical solutions are not realized, then the number of christians will go down. >> reporter: hundreds of iraqi christians carrying banners and chanting slogans recently marred to the u.n. office demanding a stop to the genocide targeting their faith. >> translator: this is a crime against iraq. christians and muslims, we live together as brothers for a long time. we just want the peace and love. >> reporter: from baghdad to washington, isis's persecution of christians has been internationally condemned. >> the humanitarian situation is extremely serious and it is heartbreaking particularly when it comes to christian minorities and other vulnerable groups. >> reporter: but little is being done, and iraqi christians who have said mass in mosul for more than 1800 years are now gone, forced to observe their faith elsewhere now. michael holmes, cnn. >>> still to come on cnn, a second american infected with ebola has arrived in the united states. we'll bring you an update on her condition after this. first, cnn takes you exclusively to the epicenter of th

almost all of them christian. but the city of mosul fell, half of the population ned to the kurtish north. and now thousands more from reportedly began to do the same thing. >> we go gano the kurdish north. and immanuel, in charge of the church projects, and it's good to have you with us. whawhat are you hearing? what is happening to christian communities there? >> well, for the second time in a month, the christian community, surrounding mosul, have been subject to attacks by isis fighters, and they have control of many many villages. [ unintelligible ] and they have destroyed the churches, and they have removed the crosses from the domes of the churches, and they are being replaced by the flag of isis. and there's a mass exodus of the population there. more than 100,000 people have been forced and displaced from their homes. the homes now have been looted and pillaged by the neighboring refugees, and they made it to the kurdistan region. and they're in a very desperate situation. they take refuge in gardens, and

against this ancient christian community. and it's not just the christians who are under threat. basically, any religious or ethnic minority. that includes yazidis. that includes shiite muslims. that includes the turk amens, the bashar. they are all on the run right now, terrified of this strict and very violent interpretation of islam implemented by the islamic state of iraq and syria. or isis. and this is the situation right now. women like ihlas, her family, have slept for the second night in this church with their 40-day-old baby right here. and sadly, this is probably just the very beginning of this humanitarian crisis. ivan watson, cnn, anqawa in iraqi kurdistan. >> there are fears of genocide. and as ivan just reported, religious minorities in iraq are being persecuted because they are not fundamentalist muslims. paula hancocks takes a closer look. >> reporter: labeled devil worshippers by their enemies, the yazidis have been targeted for centuries. 2007 hundreds were killed in massive truck bombs in northwest iraq. al

christian and other minorities from isis.atest as it breaks. doug? >> the number of humanitarian air drops for the beleagued yezidis trapped on mt. sinjar is incre increasinging. they dropped tons of food, water, tents and other equipment in the last couple of days, but at least 56 children have died of dehydration. there are 50 to 150,000 people who have fled their homes and retreated to the area, believed to be the place where noah's ark came to rest. they are keeping the isis forces those strikes increased today with at least four -- by f-18s holding ice isis at bay is short-term. >> not only have they acquired this dam, they've announceded, remember the flood with noah, we can do that, we can flood the region and drown everybody in sight, so not only is there sort of a military threat, that they could kill a lot of civilians and people, but if you control water in that part of the world, you control life. >> more troubling to some are isis' broader aspirations. >> for attacks in western europe. >> isis has along its ranks

they hate christianity and they don't want any religion.derstand why the navy is so afraid of these atheists. navy stands up to terrorists, chinese, everybody oversees but they gave to atheists? >> they think christians will not fight back. you know what i don't want the trouble. christians don't cause a lot of trouble? that is ridiculous. they're not forcing anyone sandra, to pray. >> aren't they forces christians to not have accessibility and not read the bible, andrea. >> excellent observation, sandra. the establishment clause was designed to prevent people from trying to get people to read certain religious texts. the atheists are acting almost form of a religion, a godless religion, like religious zealots trying to eradicate any religious text that references god or christiane think at this they could be in violation of the establishment clause i see as a sword. that is exactly what the first amendment was not signed do. look these bibles were donated. let them have the bibles. military is under attack bit pc police under this administ

then it became predominantly christian and then it became almost exclusively christian and jewish. and as for now it's gone much further than that so we have a very religiously diverse country. there are a lot of hindus, buddhists and all sorts of other religions and they all should be treated equally and i just don't see how it is possible to compose anything that is acceptable to all of these groups have you haven't given me an example. >> we cannot treat everybody equally without the prayer altogether. we can treat the great majority of people equally have a tradition of prayer to the almighty, the governor of the universe, creator of the world and we want to take the groups we are going to exclude. >> the groups are too small. >> those who do not understand the manifestations of the one probably excluded. i'm not sure that many others are. we have all of these hypotheticals but the point is we have done this kind of prayer in the country for 200 years. there is a long tradition of civic prayer and they know how to do it. no one has told them that's what we want you to do and i

christian countries around the world, those are the majority christian, wait -- with the exception to the camera to say something. obama just now begins to talk about christians. we've been talking about this on this show now for four months. this is nothing new. you're talking about isis, what they've been doing to christians. they started this in egypt months ago and we sat back, the pope has sat back. everybody has sat back i guess out of fear of the muslims. but it's about time that the people wake up and the government and the majority of the christians and realize they're trying to erad rate the entire religion and that, mr. pope, is something you want to get into earlier. >> oh, my gosh. >> let's not offend the pope. >> i don't have a date for you, bob, but i kind of remember when we were talking about the 1,800-year-old church that was leveled in syria. he weighed in. look. whether it's the muslim brotherhood killing or syria or isis. there's one other, it's islamists. muslim radicals. they're so intolerant. >> jihadists. >> yeah. we're talking about it. we were the only ones

thousands of christians to flee.nd takes over key parts of the country, including iraq's largest dam, according to the militants, a key source of electricity and water. the white house continuing to rule out any u.s. military boots on the ground. if there is military action, it will be air strikes at this point, and now thousands, tens of thousands of iraqis on the run with nowhere to go. chris? >> the looming concern, barbara, what if the air strikes are not enough? then what to save all these lives. thank you for the reporting. let us know what changes. kate over to you. >> the threat to american personnel is a huge concern for president obama but the humanitarian crisis that's going on in the region is also devastating. militants taking control over so much land in the north over here, driving hundreds of thousands of people away, as barbara was just laying out. will they ever get their lives back? that question remains to be known. cnn's ivan watson joins us on the phone now, he's in iraq, he's in irbil. ivan, yo