News

Life for some Christians in German refugee shelters ‘still unbearable’

  October 17, 2016 Afghanistan, Angela Merkel, Chechnya, Eritrea, Europe, Germany, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Migrants, Refugees, Syria

Mahan, 2, an Iranian Christian refugee who along with his parents is seeking asylum in Germany, peeks from behind a glass partition in the dining room at the Spreehotel refugee centre in January 2015 in Bautzen, Germany. About 200 refugees, many from Syria and Tunisia, but also from Chechnya, the . . . Read More

Cairo bishop urges Church to be ready for martyrdom

  October 14, 2016 Egypt Berbers, Cairo, Copts, North Africa, Refugees, Tunisia

Archbishop Mouneer Anis. Michael Adel, Bridges Cultural Center   A senior Anglican archbishop from the Global South called for the Church to be “ready to sacrifice their lives for the sake of Christ” in the face of persecution, restrictions, terrorism, and violence carried out in the name of religion. Archbishop . . . Read More

Monk living near Mosul: ‘Persecution is a pride for us’

  October 13, 2016 Iraq Islamic State, Mosul, Qaraqosh, Tel Skuf

St. Matthew’s monastery falls halfway between Mosul and Iraq’s Kurdistan.World Watch Monitor   As anti-Islamic State (IS) forces prepare for a major push to dislodge the jihadists from Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, thoughts are turning to what could happen to those still living in the region. Displacement camps are . . . Read More

UPDATE: At least 23 killed in fresh attack in north of C. African Republic

  October 13, 2016 Central African Republic Anti-balaka, Bangui, Catherine Samba-Panza, Central African Republic, Kaga Bandoro, PK5, Seleka

UPDATE (13 Oct.): Fighters from Central African Republic’s largely Muslim Séléka militia attacked refugees in Kaga Bandoro, in the country’s remote north on Wednesday (12 Oct.), reports Reuters. Thirteen people were stabbed or hacked to death, before U.N. peacekeepers repelled the attackers, killing at least 10 of them, officials said. Several . . . Read More

Asia Bibi’s appeal delayed; 150 Islamic leaders call for her to hang, whatever the outcome

  October 13, 2016 Pakistan Asia Bibi, Blasphemy, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Mumtaz Qadri, Salmaan Taseer, Sunni Tehreek

After more than seven years in prison, the first Pakistani Christian woman to be sentenced to death for blasphemy has had her Supreme Court appeal delayed, amidst renewed Islamist calls for her to die. Aasiya Noreen, commonly known as Asia Bibi, in prison since the summer of 2009, was arrested . . . Read More

Slashed by machetes and left for dead in the DRC

  October 12, 2016 Democratic Republic of the Congo ADF, Beni, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Islamic extremism, North Kivu

In the volatile province of North Kivu in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a father of three has described how Islamist militants carrying guns and machetes almost killed him. Jean*, who’s recovering in hospital from his injuries, was attacked while walking home from work, when he ran into rebels. . . . Read More

Sudan detains 6 Christians, threatens to demolish 5 churches

  October 12, 2016 Sudan African Union, Churches, Episcopal Church of Sudan, Gadaref, Hassan Taour, Kadugli, Khartoum, Kuwa Shamal, Nuba Mountains, South Kordofan, Sudan

Sudan has detained three church leaders and three church members, meanwhile warning five churches of impending demolition. The six, from the Evangelical Church in Wad Medani (200km southeast of the capital, Khartoum), were briefly arrested on Sunday (9 Oct.) after refusing an order to hand over to the government a . . . Read More

Lawyers ‘threatened’ in boy’s Kaaba ‘blasphemy’ case

  October 11, 2016 Pakistan Blasphemy, Islamic extremism, Lahore, Nabeel Masih, Nadeem Masih, Sweepers

Nabeel Masih, 16, is alleged to have “defamed” the Kaaba in Mecca, the building at the centre of Islam’s most sacred mosque.Amalia Sari / Flickr / CC   Lawyers representing a 16-year-old Pakistani Christian boy accused of blasphemy for ‘liking’ a photo posted on Facebook have reported being intimidated by . . . Read More

Pakistan: Christian boy, 14, raped and hung from tree, but police say death ‘natural’

  October 11, 2016 Pakistan Faisalabad, Islamic extremism, Police

Police in a village in Pakistan have denied knowledge of the existence of a post-mortem which shows that a 14-year-old Christian boy was raped, then strangled. Instead, they say he died of “natural causes” by drinking a sugary drink after eating fruit. Zeeshan Masih, a resident of Ghos Nagar, Chak . . . Read More

Nigerian Fulani herdsmen’s attacks continue amidst government inaction

  October 11, 2016 Nigeria Agatu, Benue, Enugu, Fulani herdsmen, Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria

In Waku, Benue State, one of the numerous villages in Nigeria’s ‘Middle Belt’ displaced by Hausa-Fulani Muslim herdsmen, on 18 August a small frightened calf was tied to a stake by a group of Christian villagers. The angry mob was waiting for the arrival of its owners, herdsmen who’d destroyed . . . Read More