General

Indonesian churches remain closed

February 12, 2014 Indonesia Java, Pentecostals

All smiles: A Muslim leader shares a joke with local police officers after protests in West Java that secured the closure of four churches.Courtesy Open Doors International Four churches in Indonesia remain closed two months after local officials yielded to the demands of protesting Muslim hardliners. The Indonesian Full . . . Read More

Evangelism charges dropped against Moroccan convert

February 11, 2014 Morocco Aïn Aïcha, Fes, Greek Orthodox, King Mohammed VI, Mohamed el Baldi, Proselytism

New Life Church in Fes, Morocco.World Watch Monitor The case of a Moroccan convert to Christianity sentenced to 30 months in jail for evangelism is expected to be officially dismissed on Feb. 13 when the judge provides his final ruling, after the charges against him were concluded to have . . . Read More

Female church workers raped and killed in South Sudan

February 10, 2014 South Sudan Bor, Dinka, Episcopal Church of Sudan, Juba, Nuer, Riek Machar, Salva Kiir, South Sudan, White Army

Bor has been the flashpoint of the conflict, with the city changing hands between the government and opposition forces several times. Most of the civilian population has been displaced.Dominika Arseniuk, Polish Humanitarian Action / Flickr / Creative Commons Scores of female church workers were massacred last month as they . . . Read More

Pastor killed as riots hit Mombasa

February 7, 2014 Kenya Al-Shabaab, Islamic extremism, Mombasa, Police

An assistant pastor at a church in Mombasa, Kenya was killed on Feb. 2 while guarding his church during the night. Lawrence Kazungu Kadenge, 59, assistant pastor at the Glory of God Ministries Church, died at about 2 a.m. Witnesses reported seeing two men fleeing the area. Senior pastor Andrew . . . Read More

Pastor and son killed as CAR violence continues

February 6, 2014 Central African Republic Bangui, Bocaranga, Bria, Catherine Samba-Panza, Michel Djotodia, Seleka

Bangui.World Watch Monitor A pastor and his son are among the latest casualties of violence in the Central African Republic, which continues despite the recent appointment of Catherine Samba-Panza as interim President. Rev. Pierre-Séverin Kongbo, 52, his son Dieubéni were killed on Jan. 28 by former members of the disbanded . . . Read More

Algerian Christian refused burial in public cemetery

February 5, 2014 Algeria Bejaia, Burial, Islamic extremism, Kabylie, Ramadan, Tizi Ouzou

A Christian family in Algeria has been refused permission to bury their son in the local public cemetery because he was not a Muslim. “The leaders of the mosque demanded that I would have to follow Islamic burial rites if I was to bury my son in the cemetery,” said . . . Read More

Egyptian priest claims church attack was Muslim Brotherhood ‘revenge’

February 4, 2014 Egypt Copts, Mohamed Morsi, Muslim Brotherhood, Pope Tawadros II

The priest of an Egyptian church attacked last week says his church was targeted as part of a wider pattern of retribution from Muslim Brotherhood supporters against churches and security forces following the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi last summer. Around 70 churches were attacked last summer in retaliation against the . . . Read More

Kazakh pastor’s trial halts amid heated arguments

January 31, 2014 Kazakhstan Almaty, Astana, Bakhytzhan Kashkumbayev, Protestants

Bakhytzhan KashkumbayevWorld Watch Monitor The trial of a 67-year-old pastor in Kazakhstan halted amid heated arguments on Wednesday (January 29), as the pastor and his lawyer stormed out of the courtroom, even after two of his original charges were dropped. The pastor and his lawyer say the whole court . . . Read More

Religious leaders plead for UN force in Central African Republic

January 31, 2014 Central African Republic African Union, Bangui, Dieudonné Nzapalainga, Michel Djotodia, Nicolas Guérékoyamé-Gbangou, Oumar Kobine Layama, Seleka, UN

The Catholic Archbishop of Bangui, Dieudonné Nzapalainga, says Central Africans live in fear.Courtesy Open Doors International Two of the most senior religious figures in the Central African Republic (CAR) visited London this week to urge the UK to support the deployment of a UN-led peacekeeping operation in the war-torn . . . Read More

Nigerian worshippers killed during mass

January 29, 2014 Nigeria Adamawa, Boko Haram, Borno, Yola

World Watch Monitor is curating news coverage of the attacks on Sunday in north-eastern Nigeria. At least 22 worshippers died at a church in Yola, while 300 homes were burnt down in a village in neighbouring Borno state and at least 52 people were killed. Boko Haram is suspected of carrying . . . Read More

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