Gunmen kidnap 8 Christian students in Iraq -police

BAGHDAD, June 20 (Reuters) Gunmen kidnapped eight Christian university students and a lecturer in northern Iraq today, police said.

They said the group was snatched off a bus east of the city of Mosul. The students were going home after completing exams.

Militants often target Iraq's tiny Christian community. Thousands of Christians have fled Iraq in recent years, joining an exodus of some 2 million Iraqis who have sought a safer life in mainly neighbouring countries.

Reuters RS DB2240