In answer to a question about religious freedom in Iraq, Hanford said:
what we're dealing with in Iraq is really a security situation that makes it difficult for religious practice to occur in a normal way. The constitution of the new Iraqi Government actually provides rather robust guarantees, and this is something we're very pleased to see because it's a very good constitution for that region of the world. But religious minorities are vulnerable, sometimes due to their small numbers and lack of organization. For the most part, people are getting caught in the crossfire. In the case of these minorities, though, there have been cases where it's clear that certain groups have been targeted.
The real problem that we're dealing with is that with the sectarian violence, not necessarily focused upon religious practice, that at the same time religious practice winds up being affected.
