News

German aid worker killed, Finnish woman ‘kidnapped’ in Kabul

  May 22, 2017 Afghanistan Kabul, Kidnapping, Taliban

A German woman and her Afghan guard were killed, and a Finnish woman apparently kidnapped, at an international guesthouse run by a Swedish-based charity in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul late on Saturday evening, 20 May. The two women were aid workers employed by Operation Mercy, a relief and development NGO which . . . Read More

Iraqi bishops seek $262m for post-IS ‘Marshall Plan’

  May 20, 2017 Iraq Bashar Warda, Erbil, Iraq, Islamic State, Jordan, Lebanon, Nineveh Plains, Tel Skuf, Turkey

Church leaders in northern Iraq are launching an ambitious US$262 million “Marshall Plan” for the reconstruction of Christian-majority villages devastated by the occupation of Islamic State (IS) jihadists – but knowing they could be subjected to attacks while they implement it. The ecumenical Bishops’ Emergency Committee (BEC) hopes to raise the . . . Read More

Why Iranian Christians are pinning hopes on ‘moderate’ Rouhani, despite human rights failures

  May 19, 2017 Iran Amin Afshar Naderi, Armenians, Assyrians, Ayatollah Khamenei, Hassan Rouhani, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Tehran, Victor Bet-Tamraz

As Iranians head to the polls today (19 May) to vote for their next President, World Watch Monitor takes a look at President Hassan Rouhani’s first term in office and the potential impact of the election result for the country’s Christian minority. Hassan Rouhani was voted in four years ago, . . . Read More

US Commission urges Trump administration to prioritise international religious freedom

  May 18, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Abune Antonios, Andrew Brunson, Central African Republic, China, Donald Trump, Eritrea, Eritrean Orthodox Church, Iran, Mike Pence, Myanmar, Nguyen Cong Chinh, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Religious freedom, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, USA, Uzbekistan, Vietnam

An influential US government commission that monitors religious freedom around the world is urging President Donald Trump and his new administration to take concrete steps to make advocacy of universal religious rights a priority in American foreign policy. “Our foreign policy should not simply be about US self-interest – you know, . . . Read More

Turkmenistan’s secret additions to already restrictive Religion Law

  May 18, 2017 Turkmenistan Azerbaijan, Central Asia, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, Islamic extremism, Pentecostals, Seventh-day Adventists, Turkmenistan

It’s been over a year since the Central Asian state of Turkmenistan added further restrictions to its Religion Law, but the changes were introduced in such secrecy that few knew about them until well after the event. It wasn’t until January this year that regional news agency Forum 18 shed . . . Read More

75% of north-east Nigeria’s water and sanitation infrastructure destroyed

  May 18, 2017 Nigeria Bauchi, Boko Haram, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Plateau, Sharia

Gloria Shehu is one of the people in north-east Nigeria set to benefit from the UN’s humanitarian fund targeting the devastation from the conflict with Boko Haram. Yesterday (17 May) the agency stepped up a call for more money, reminding that “the number of people close to sliding from emergency . . . Read More

UPDATE: CAR’s peace-making leader mourns loss of loved ones as 3,000 shelter inside church

  May 18, 2017 Central African Republic Alindao, Anti-balaka, Bangassou, Basse-Kotto, Seleka, UPC

UPDATE (18 May): As more details emerge, it has been confirmed that it was Rev. Nicolas Guérékoyamé-Gbangou’s youngest brother and nephew, not his son and grandson, who were killed in the latest eruption of violence in the Central African Republic. A local church leader told World Watch Monitor they may . . . Read More

Returning Christian families urged to put down roots in northern Iraq

  May 18, 2017 Iraq Bartella, Iraq, Islamic State, Karamles, Nineveh Plains, Qaraqosh, Tel Skuf

Three building sites have been consecrated in Iraqi territory liberated from Islamic State as part of an ambitious plan to facilitate the return of Christians eager to rebuild their homes. The first group of Christian families who were driven from their homes in the Nineveh Plains by Islamic State (IS) . . . Read More

Pakistan: Christian boy, 16, accused of Facebook blasphemy again refused bail

  May 17, 2017 Pakistan Blasphemy, Islamic extremism, Lahore, Nabeel Masih, Nadeem Masih

A Pakistani Christian boy accused of blasphemy for “liking” and “sharing” a Facebook post which “defamed and disrespected” the Kaaba in Mecca – the building at the centre of Islam’s most sacred mosque – has again been refused bail. In February, 16-year-old Nabeel Masih was refused bail by a local . . . Read More

Egypt: small signs challenging religious intolerance

  May 17, 2017 Egypt Al-Azhar, Copts, Pope Francis, Port Said, Sinai

Recent developments in Egypt show that Pope Francis’ visit to its capital Cairo last month might have inspired a more vigilant approach to religious hate speech against Christians by religious leaders and the media alike. John L. Allen writes in the Catholic publication Crux that two recent signs suggest the . . . Read More