General

All Knayeh hostages free

October 13, 2014 Syria Al-Nusra Front, Bashar al-Assad, Boulos Yazigi, Homs, Idlib, Islamic State, Kidnapping, Paolo Dall’Oglio, Raqqa, Syria, Yohanna Ibrahim

NOTE: This report, originally posted Oct. 8, is updated to include the release of all hostages The last of a group of 20 Syrian Christians kidnapped Oct. 5 have been released as their pastor awaits trial before an Islamic court. Rev. Hanna Jallouf, a Franciscan priest in the northeastern Syria town of Knayeh, was abducted with about 20 . . . Read More

As UN targeted by Islamists in Mali, Bishops urge renewed peace efforts

October 9, 2014 Mali Ansar Dine, Bamako, Gao, Kidal, Mali, MNLA, MUJAO, Timbuktu, UN

The UN Mission in Mali honors nine Nigerien peacekeepers killed on 3 October 2014.UN Photo/Marco Dormino While the world’s attention is fixed on IS in Syria and Iraq, it’s easy to forget that last year, French troops were rushed to Mali to prevent a jihadist-influenced coup that threatened to . . . Read More

‘How can I celebrate my birthday with a homeless, scattered family?’

October 3, 2014 Nigeria Abuja, Boko Haram, Borno, Chibok girls, EYN, Gwoza, Islamic extremism, Nigeria, Rebecca Dali

Dr Rebecca Dali is the founder of Centre for Caring, Empowerment and Peace Initiatives.Courtesy of CCEPI Nigerian Rebecca Dali’s birthday is 1 October – the same date as her country’s Independence Day. But this year there was little time for celebration because her home town of Michika is overrun . . . Read More

Indian Christian man forced to separate from Hindu wife by right-wing activists

October 3, 2014 India Barack Obama, BJP, Gujarat, Narendra Modi, Seventh-day Adventists, Uttar Pradesh

Narendra Modi, then chief minister of Gujarat state, at a BJP rally in 2009.Flickr / Al Jazeera English / Creative Commons An Indian couple who married Sept. 26 had their marriage annulled five days later by police under pressure from Hindu nationalists. The couple, Joseph Pawar and Ayushi Wani, were . . . Read More

Amidst political turmoil, continuing blasphemy charges for Pakistani Christians

October 2, 2014 Pakistan Blasphemy, Converts, Faisalabad, Islamic extremism, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Punjab, Sweepers, Taliban

Naja Maish his wife and family with TVS TeamCourtesy of The Voice Society Christians have continued to be accused of blasphemy against Islam, in three separate recent cases in Pakistan. In one, a group of 35 was briefly accused of insulting the Prophet Muhammed before the charge was quickly . . . Read More

Arab churches’ key contribution to Iraqi relief

October 1, 2014 Iraq Ankawa, Erbil, Islamic State, Trauma, UN, Yazidis

Members of Kasr el-Dobara church in Egypt, shown in 2012, have given generously to support refugees in Iraq.World Watch Monitor As a coalition of Western and Arab countries continues military action to try to defeat Islamic State (IS), it’s timely to hear how the region’s largest Christian minority – . . . Read More

Algerian Christians: ‘We must not yield to fear’

October 1, 2014 Algeria Algeria, Bejaia, Kabylie, Oran, Tizi Ouzou

Notre Dame d’Afrique basilica in AlgiersWorld Watch Monitor The assassination of a French tourist by militants in Algeria has raised the fear of new terrorist attacks in the country. Hervé Gourdel, 55, was beheaded on September 24 by a radical Islamist group, ‘Soldiers of the Caliphate’ linked to Islamic . . . Read More

Turkey closes down Protestant church

September 30, 2014 Turkey Gaziantep, Protestants

Turkish authorities have sealed a Protestant church in Southeast Turkey and ordered its American pastor fined and deported on charges of “working illegally.” Lawyers filed a court appeal Sept. 26 to postpone the deportation, protesting what Turkey’s Association of Protestant Churches called an “absolutely arbitrary” ruling against the Gaziantep congregation . . . Read More

New modern Persian Bible launched in UK and Turkey

September 29, 2014 Iran Ayatollah Khamenei, Bibles

A major new translation of the whole Bible into modern Persian was launched in London and Istanbul last week (September 22- 24). The project was especially significant as some of its’ earliest contributors were martyred for their faith. Its publishers are Elam Ministries, founded in 1990 by senior Iranian church . . . Read More

What’s the threat of Islamic State to the Church worldwide?

September 25, 2014 Global News -- No Particular Country Al-Qaeda, Bartella, Dohuk, Erbil, Hizb ut-Tahrir, Iraq, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Israel, Jizya, Jordan, Kurds, Lebanon, Muslim Brotherhood, Qaraqosh, Quran, Salafism, Sharia, Sunni, Syria

While Islamic State is wreaking havoc in Iraq and Syria, its ambitions do not stop there. Moreover, several world leaders are saying it is one of the biggest threats they are facing. But exactly how does Islamic State fit into the global picture of Christians under pressure for their faith . . . Read More

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