The Chaldean Catholic community was formed in Upper Mesopotamia in the 16th and 17th centuries, arising from groups of the Church of the East who, after the schism of 1552, entered communion with the Holy See (the Catholic Church). Indigenous to the region of north Iraq, southeast Turkey and northeast Syria, many have migrated to Western countries including the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Sweden and Germany. Many of them also live in Lebanon, Egypt, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Iran, Turkey, and Georgia. The most recent reasons for migration are religious persecution, ethnic persecution, poor economic conditions during the sanctions against Iraq, and poor security conditions after the 2003 invasion of Iraq.