Tag: African Union

Pope in Africa says conflict ‘feeds on fear, mistrust and despair’

November 26, 2015 Global News -- No Particular Country African Union, Al-Mourabitoun, Al-Shabaab, Bamako, Central African Republic, Dieudonné Nzapalainga, Kampala, Kenya, Nairobi, Nicolas Guérékoyamé-Gbangou, Oumar Kobine Layama, PK5, Pope Francis, Uganda, Westgate

For his first trip to Africa, Pope Francis is visiting Kenya, Uganda and the Central African Republic (CAR), from 25-30 November. The three countries all have predominantly Christian populations – Kenya about 80%, Uganda 85% and CAR 76% – with about 10% or so Muslim in each of them. But . . . Read More

Kenya to ‘re-integrate’ ex-Al-Shabaab recruits

November 9, 2015 Kenya African Union, Al-Shabaab, Garissa, Kenya, Mombasa, Somalia

Kenya has welcomed the return of 700 citizens who had joined Somalia’s Al-Shabaab militant group that has attacked churches, malls and government institutions, most notably Garissa University College where nearly 150 people — mostly Christian students — were killed last spring. The returning militants are said to be undergoing rehabilitation . . . Read More

Four years of bombings in Sudan’s Nuba Mountains

September 2, 2015 Sudan Abyei, African Union, Blue Nile, Darfur, Khartoum, Nuba Mountains, Omar al-Bashir, Sharia, South Kordofan, South Sudan, SPLM-N

A makeshift blackboard in the Nuba Mountains, where Open Doors International reports that ‘daily’ and ‘indiscriminate’ bombardment has led to the destruction of Christians’ homes, churches, schools, hospitals and crops.Courtesy Open Doors International The recent trial of nine young Christian women in the Sudanese capital Khartoum for wearing trousers . . . Read More

A convert’s story

July 31, 2015 Ethiopia Addis Ababa, African Union, Apostasy, Converts, East Africa

U.S. President Barack Obama visited Kenya and Ethiopia 24-28 July, partly to discuss regional security. In Kenya especially, Christians have been targeted by the violent al-Qaeda affiliate al-Shabaab. In the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa on 28 July, making an American president’s first speech to the African Union, Obama said . . . Read More

Obama visit puts Ethiopia’s record in spotlight

July 28, 2015 Ethiopia Addis Ababa, African Union, Amhara, Bahir Dar, Barack Obama, Churches, Ethiopia, Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Human rights, Mahibere Kidusan, Pentecostals, Protestants

n Ethiopians walk past a poster of US President Barack Obama in Addis Ababa on 27 July. gettyimages.com U.S. President Barak Obama is visiting Ethiopia on 27 and 28 July, providing an opportunity for America to prod its ally on its human-rights record, which gets low marks from world capitals. . . . Read More

Two pastors among 100s killed as UN takes over peacekeeping in CAR

September 17, 2014 Central African Republic African Union, Bambari, Bossangoa

Emergency food distribution to displaced people in Bangui; CAR. June 2014Courtesy of Open Doors International The UN has taken over peacekeeping in CAR amidst an upsurge of violence which has left scores dead, including two pastors. Pastors Thomas Ouanam, 60, and Pierre Bapteme, 46, were killed in two separate . . . Read More

Renewed fighting in Mali revives Christian anxieties

May 30, 2014 Mali African Union, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Bamako, Burkina Faso, Gao, Kidal, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Timbuktu, Tuareg

A Malian child waits to see receive a free consultation at a medical clinic in Gao, Mali.16 May 2014UN Photo/Marco Dormino Renewed fighting and re-occupation of a number of towns in northern Mali by armed Tuareg groups has renewed anxieties among the region’s Christian minority. On May 21, a . . . Read More

UN chief calls for immediate international action to halt ‘deplorable atrocities’

April 4, 2014 Central African Republic African Union, Anti-balaka, Catherine Samba-Panza, Human rights, Islamic extremism, Seleka

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon says that immediate action is needed to stop the killing in the Central African Republic (CAR), citing “grave and deplorable atrocities”, and “to prevent the further separation of communities that have lived together for centuries”. Its Human Rights chief said that, on a recent . . . Read More

Chad is withdrawing its troops from CAR

April 2, 2014 Central African Republic African Union, Central African Republic, Chad, Seleka

The neighbouring nation has contributed roughly 850 soldiers of the 6,000 strong African Union peace keeping contingent that is also backed by about 2,000 French troops. The troops were meant to serve as part of the larger peace keeping force but are no longer welcome due to their alleged links . . . 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

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