Tag: Middle East

600,000 Christians have fled Egypt since 1984

February 17, 2015 Egypt Copts, Egypt, Islamic State, Libya, Middle East, Upper Egypt

Rupert Shortt, author of Christianophobia: A Faith Under Attack, has written an opinion piece in The Telegraph in which he argues that the murder of 21 Coptic Christians by Islamic State is not an isolated case but instead “the latest of countless outrages perpetrated against Christians in or near the . . . Read More

2014: A year of rising hostility toward Christians

January 7, 2015 Global News -- No Particular Country Africa, Al-Qaeda, Al-Shabaab, Asia, Boko Haram, Buddhist nationalism, Central African Republic, China, Communism, Converts, East Africa, Fulani herdsmen, Hindu nationalism, India, Iraq, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Latin America, Malaysia, Mexico, Middle Belt, Middle East, Narendra Modi, Nigeria, North Korea, Religious freedom, Sri Lanka, Sub-Saharan Africa, Syria

While the world’s eyes were riveted to Syria and Iraq in 2014, life for Christians worsened even more profoundly in Africa, according to an annual report on religious freedom. The situation deteriorated most rapidly in Sub-Saharan Africa, in countries where Islamic extremism is the main source of pressure upon Christians, . . . Read More

Jihad not a war against Christians?

December 11, 2014 Global News -- No Particular Country Al-Qaeda, Barack Obama, Boko Haram, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Middle East, Nigeria

Christians are certainly under pressure in parts of the Middle East, but it must be emphasised that many more Muslims are killed as a result of jhadist violence, said a spokesman for a new BBC study on deaths attributed to Al-Qaeda and offshoot groups. Asked by presenter Justin Webb on . . . Read More

Christmas service a ‘worry’ in Islamist nations

December 9, 2014 Christmas, Islamic extremism, Middle East, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan

The Evening Standard has published an opinion piece by author Rupert Shortt, in which he argues that Christmas this year will be a time of worry for many Christians in countries ‘from Morocco to Pakistan’ in which Christians cannot worship without harassment. He goes onto argue that religion is not . . . Read More

Warnings of draining the Middle East of Christians

November 21, 2014 Islamic State, Justin Welby, Middle East, UK

According to The Telegraph, “offering asylum in Britain to Christians fleeing the forces of the so-called Islamic State risks ‘draining’ the Middle East of communities which have been there since the time of St Paul, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has warned.” Welby said in extreme cases the UK . . . Read More

Feast of Tabernacles spotlights Christian ‘plight’

October 13, 2014 Israel Israel, Middle East

“The plight of Christian communities in the Middle East” will be the focus of the six-day Feast of Tabernacles in . Sponsored by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, the event is meant to be an occasion to “rejoice in the power of God, remember His past provisions, and celebrate His . . . Read More

ISIS orders last Christians out of Mosul

July 18, 2014 Iraq Erbil, Iraq, Islamic State, Kurds, Middle East, Mosul

The Islamist militants controlling the Iraqi city of Mosul have ordered all remaining Christians to leave town immediately or face execution, according to news sources. Middle East Concern, a London-based association of Christian-rights agencies with operations in the Middle East, reported Friday that the militants controlling Mosul had summoned Christian . . . Read More

Tony Blair calls for focus on radical Islam

April 23, 2014 Global News -- No Particular Country China, Islamic extremism, London, Middle East, Russia, Tony Blair, UK, Ukraine

Former UK Prime Minister and now Middle East envoy Tony Blair has encouraged Western leaders to focus on the threat of Islamic extremism and to put aside their differences with Russia over Ukraine. In his speech at Bloomberg’s London office Mr Blair called on Western leaders to “elevate the issue . . . Read More

Freedom of religion an issue ‘whose time has come’

February 13, 2014 Global News -- No Particular Country Arab Spring, Barack Obama, China, Egypt, Eritrea, Europe, India, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mali, Middle East, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia, Sharia, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, UN, USA, Uzbekistan, Vietnam

Freedom of religion and belief is an issue “whose time has come”, the vice chairwoman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said yesterday. During the presentation of two reports on religious freedom at the European Parliament in Brussels on Feb. 12, commission Vice Chairwoman Katrina Lantos Swett said . . . Read More

Pressure on Christians grew in 2013

January 8, 2014 Global News -- No Particular Country Afghanistan, African Union, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, BJP, Buddhist nationalism, Central African Republic, Colombia, Eritrea, FARC, Hindu nationalism, India, Iraq, Islamic extremism, Kyrgyzstan, Middle East, Nigeria, North Africa, North Korea, Pakistan, Peshawar, Religious freedom, Sadad, Sharia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sub-Saharan Africa, Sudan, Syria, Uganda, UN, Yemen

More than ever, some of the hardest places for Christians to live are fragile or failed states where militant Islamist movements flourish, according to an annual report on Christian religious freedom. Pressure on Christians intensified worldwide in 2013, according to Open Doors International, a charity that provides support to Christians . . . Read More

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