MOSCOW, July 22. /ITAR-TASS/. Russia’s Foreign Ministry urged the world community on Tuesday to step up efforts for preventing persecutions against Christians in Iraq.

The ministry called for assisting to Iraq to ensuring law and order in the country.

Militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant declared a caliphate, or new Islamic state, across parts of Iraq and Syria. Christians must convert to Islam, leave or face execution.

Late Monday, the UN Security Council issued a unanimous declaration denouncing what it calls “the systematic persecution of individuals from minority populations” and those who refuse the “extremist ideology” of ISIL and associated armed groups. The Council said such attacks “may constitute a crime against humanity, for which those responsible must be held accountable.”

“Jihadists stake on confrontation between religious minorities. They seek to upset peaceful coexistence between different religious communities in Iraq. It is necessary to repulse the ISIL attempts,” the ministry said.

“Those who back ISIL assume responsibility for the events in the region and outside it,” the ministry said.