(AINA) -- The Middle East Christian Committee (MECHRIC) in Washington confirmed that an "emergency leadership meeting of NGOs will be held in Europe" early November. The conference will be held in a country member of the European Union and will gather delegates from various Middle East Christian organizations including Copts, Maronites, Assyrians (also known as Chaldeans, Syriacs), other Mideast Christians as well as other international NGOs.

A member of MECHRIC, who wished to remain anonymous, said "With the various developments in the Arab Spring, Middle East Christians, numbering around 25 million inside the region, have been submitted to violence and ethnic cleansing in Syria, Iraq and Egypt, in addition to political repression in Lebanon, Iran and Sudan. MECHRIC and its affiliates decided to launch an international outreach in order to inform decisions centers in the West about the gravity of the situation and consult with these actors about potential initiatives."