General

Weary Copts urge Pope Francis to challenge Sisi over attacks and chronic discrimination

April 27, 2017 Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Al-Azhar, Copts, Egypt, Palm Sunday, Pope Francis, Pope Tawadros II, Tanta

Egyptian Copts have welcomed Pope Francis’ “insistence” that his visit to Cairo this week go ahead despite the recent attacks on two churches that killed 45 worshippers. The head of the Catholic Church will arrive in Cairo on Friday and visit President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar . . . Read More

US watchdog adds Russia to its list of worst oppressors of religion

April 27, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Bahrain, Religious freedom, Russia, Taliban, USA

Religious freedom is in retreat worldwide, and for the first time Russia is among the world’s worst oppressors, according to America’s most prominent and influential scorecard on the issue. The annual report by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, released 26 April, puts its case plainly in its opening . . . Read More

How do Christians respond to persecution?

April 26, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Iraq, Islamic State, Pakistan, Syria, USA

Christians choose to respond to religious persecution by adopting “survival strategies” that require a lot of “creativity, determination and courage".

A report looking into the ways Christians respond to persecution has found that their “survival strategies” require a lot of “creativity, determination and courage”, while violence is seldom used. “Christians are the most widely targeted religious community, suffering terrible persecution globally,” according to the University of Notre Dame’s report, In . . . Read More

Displaced Iraqi Christians open sweet factory in Erbil

April 25, 2017 Iraq Ankawa, Nineveh Plains, Qaraqosh

In his new factory, surrounded by sesame seeds, pistachios and sugar, Rabeea dips his spatula into a large vat of honey-coloured syrup. He’s checking its consistency to see if it’s ready for the next step in the production of traditional Iraqi sweets, like sorjuq or halqoum. “We deliver our products . . . Read More

Ethiopian state considers restricting ‘Christian activity’ to church buildings

April 24, 2017 Ethiopia Amhara, Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Islamic extremism, Tigray

Ethiopia’s northern Tigray State is considering adopting a new law that would restrict Christian activities to within official church compounds, rendering illegal the activities of smaller churches that do not own their own buildings and gather in houses. The law, if passed, would most affect Christians from outside the Ethiopian . . . Read More

Nigeria: bishop blames government after 12 killed in Easter rampage

April 20, 2017 Easter, Fulani herdsmen, Kafanchan, Middle Belt

Bishop Bagobiri accused the local government of complicity with the Fulani herdsmen who have destroyed homes and livelihoods and killed more than 800 people since 2011

At least 12 worshippers were killed and many more were injured when suspected Fulani herdsmen opened fire on Easter Saturday (15 April) in a village in the Christian-dominated south of Nigeria’s Kaduna state. The local Catholic bishop, Joseph Danlami Bagobiri of Kafanchan, accused the local governor, Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, of complicity . . . Read More

Coptic boy, 16, ‘murdered by Islamic extremists seeking to scare Christians’

April 20, 2017 Egypt Copts, El-Arish, Islamic State, Minya, Palm Sunday, Sinai, Upper Egypt

An Egyptian Christian boy murdered on Holy Thursday (13 April) was killed by Islamic extremists hoping to further intimidate Christians in the run up to Easter, say his family. Allam Bashay Gabriel found his 16-year-old son, Gamal, with his throat slit and lying in a pool of blood, in Qai . . . Read More

Who speaks for Islam in Pakistan – and where does that leave non-Muslims?

April 19, 2017 Pakistan Asia Bibi, Barelvi, Blasphemy, Deobandi, Islamic extremism, Mumtaz Qadri, Pakistan Muslim League, Salmaan Taseer, Shia, Sufi, Sunni, Taliban

Last week, a Muslim student was killed by a mob after posting allegedly “blasphemous” content on social media. His murder was the latest in a long line of religiously motivated attacks in Pakistan, many of which were inspired by the country’s strict blasphemy laws. Below, World Watch Monitor takes a look at . . . Read More

Indonesia’s Christian governor Ahok fails in re-election bid, as ‘blasphemy’ trial continues

April 19, 2017 Indonesia Ahok, Blasphemy, Islamic extremism, Jakarta

Preliminary results suggest that Jakarta’s Christian governor, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (better known as “Ahok”), has failed in his re-election bid, as his trial for “blasphemy” goes on. Ahok is accused of insulting a Qur’anic verse during a campaign speech. Hard-line Islamist groups have rallied large crowds against him in recent . . . Read More

Indian Christians protest at Good Friday launch of ‘Digital India Day’

April 19, 2017 India Arunachal Pradesh, Digital India Day, Good Governance Day, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Narendra Modi

Ignoring protests from Christians, the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, launched Digital India Day on 14 April – Good Friday – as part of his government’s campaign to promote widespread use of electronic products and services. India’s Christians said they felt marginalised by the move because it fell on an . . . Read More

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