General

Kidnapped 9 months ago in broad daylight, where is Malaysian pastor Raymond Koh?

November 2, 2017 Malaysia Kidnapping, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Minorities, Petaling Jaya, Raymond Koh

Raymond Koh turns 63 today, but almost nine months after his abduction there is still no news of the Malaysian pastor. Koh was kidnapped in broad daylight by masked men driving black 4x4s in Petaling Jaya, near Kuala Lumpur, on 13 February. The whole incident, which lasted less than a . . . Read More

Pakistani Christians face discrimination in prisons too

November 1, 2017 Pakistan Caste, Gujranwala, Kasur, Minorities, Pakistan, Peshawar, Prisons, Punjab, Taliban

Pakistani Christians, often discriminated against because of their faith and standing as members of Pakistan’s lowest caste, find that discrimination follows them in prisons as well. The justice system is extremely slow in Pakistan and, as a result, thousands of Pakistanis languish in overcrowded jails, having yet to face trial. . . . Read More

Jordan charity ‘restoring dignity’ to Iraq’s refugees

October 31, 2017 Jordan Amman, Iraq, Islamic State, Jordan, Refugees, Trauma

There was a time when Maran, a mother of three, worked as an engineer and had a long career ahead of her. But when Iraqi refugees started arriving in Amman, Jordan’s capital, fleeing from the violence Islamic State had unleashed upon their communities, Maran was dismayed about the treatment they . . . Read More

Cameroon: 6 siblings kidnapped by Boko Haram escape to safety

October 31, 2017 Cameroon Boko Haram, Cameroon, Children, Far North, Nigeria

Six siblings kidnapped from Moskota in the Far North region of Cameroon on 17 August have been found near the border with Nigeria by a group of vigilantes. A local source told World Watch Monitor that the children, between the ages of three and 15, had been taken to Nigeria, . . . Read More

Central African Republic IDPs angry at UN failure to protect them

October 31, 2017 Central African Republic Bangassou, Bocaranga, Bozoum, Central African Republic, Gambo, UN

When armed men attacked the north-western town of Bocaranga in the Central African Republic in September, thousands fled, including women and children. Madeleine, nine, was among them. She didn’t think of taking a toy; instead, she strapped her 15-month-old baby sister Cesare on her back and ran. With others, she . . . Read More

Jill Ireland back in court as Malaysia considers Christians’ right to call God ‘Allah’

October 27, 2017 Malaysia 'Allah', Borneo, Islamic extremism, Jill Ireland, Kuala Lumpur, Lawrence Andrew, Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak, The Herald

This is a Bahasa speaking church meeting in East Malaysia where 'Allah' is used to refer to God. In 1986, the Malaysian government banned the usage of this word by Christians. The Catholic Herald fought against this ban for seven years in court but finally lost. This battle continues with the Jill Ireland case. (See article - Jill Ireland Case on 'Allah' Far from Over)

A Malaysian Christian woman’s campaign for Christians’ right to use the word “Allah” for “God” has resumed in Malaysia’s High Court. Jill Ireland has been campaigning for Christians’ right to use the word ever since immigration officials at a Kuala Lumpur airport seized eight Christian CDs from her in May . . . Read More

Sudan Church of Christ leaders charged with sound pollution for ‘noisy’ services

October 27, 2017 Sudan Churches, Islamic extremism, Kuwa Shamal, Pentecostals, Port Sudan, Sadiq al-Mahdi, Sanctions, Sudan, Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church, Sudanese Church of Christ

A 2015 church service in Sudan's Nuba Mountains (World Watch Monitor)

Five Sudanese Christians arrested, but later released, last Sunday (22 October) have now been charged with causing sound pollution through overly loud church services. The five church leaders – Ayouba Telyan, Abdelbagi Tutu, Ali El Hakim, Ambarator Hamad and Haibil Ibrahim – were summoned to court yesterday morning (26 October), but . . . Read More

Will end of sanctions against Sudan ease Bible shortage for 1 million Christians?

October 26, 2017 Sudan Bibles, Khartoum, Port Sudan, Sanctions, Sudan, USA

Measures by the Sudanese government to prevent Bibles from entering the country are leaving the churches there with a serious shortage of Scripture and teaching materials. One senior church leader, who has overseen the import of hundreds of thousands of Bibles and other pieces of Christian literature to Sudan, told . . . Read More

Uzbekistan should ‘protect religious freedom, not see religion as a threat’ – UN Special Rapporteur

October 25, 2017 Uzbekistan Ahmed Shaheed, Bukhara, Censorship, Central Asia, Fergana Valley, Human rights, Khorezm, Soviet Union, Tashkent, USA, Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan should invest more time in protecting religious freedom in its ongoing reforms rather than see religion as a threat, a UN expert has concluded after an official visit to the country. “Resilience against religious extremism can be built on strengthening diversity as well as freedom of religion or belief,” . . . Read More

Christians who fled IS displaced again as Iraqi and Kurdish forces clash

October 25, 2017 Iraq Alqosh, Bashiqa, Dohuk, IDPs, Iraq, Islamic State, Kurds, Nineveh Plains, Peshmerga, Tel Skuf

Fighting has erupted between Iraqi and Kurdish forces in a predominantly Christian town in northern Iraq, causing residents to flee. Around 900 families have fled Telskuf and its surrounding villages – part of the Nineveh Plains region of northern Iraq liberated last year from the Islamic State group – to . . . Read More

Catching Our Eye