Tag: Yemen

For persecuted Christian women, violence is compounded by ‘shaming’

March 8, 2019 Global News -- No Particular Country Algeria, Colombia, Converts, Eritrea, Iraq, Islamic State, Jordan, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Women, Yemen

Women to women conference in Ethiopia, February 2018.

It would be hard to argue the world is unaware that Islamic State fighters used rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war against Iraq’s Yazidi women: Nadia Murad shared the 2018 Nobel Prize after she told the world of her personal ordeal at their hands. However, testimonies from . . . Read More

UK parliamentary group calls out 27 countries for ‘significant’ religious freedom violations

December 10, 2018 Global News -- No Particular Country Afghanistan, Ahmed Shaheed, Bangladesh, Central African Republic, China, Colombia, Egypt, Eritrea, Human rights, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Maldives, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Religious freedom, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tariq Ahmad, Turkey, Turkmenistan, UK, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen

A church in Bartella, a town near the Iraqi city of Mosul, after Islamic State militants left the area in October 2016. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

A “Commentary on the Current State of Freedom of Religion or Belief” presented by a group of British parliamentarians today, 10 December, highlights 27 countries where people’s religious freedom has been denied and abused in the past year. The report, presented by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for International . . . Read More

‘I have witnessed the power of prayer’ – priest held captive for 18 months in Yemen

November 9, 2018 Yemen Aden, Kidnapping, Pope Francis, Tom Uzhunnalil, Yemen

The Indian priest who was held hostage for 18 months in Yemen says his experiences taught him about “the power of prayer”. Fr. Tom Uzhunnalil, who was abducted in March 2016 and freed in September 2017, told Catholic news agency ACI Prensa his ability to persevere during his captivity was . . . Read More

Attacks against Copts ‘among deadliest acts of religious persecution’ – report

September 14, 2018 Global News -- No Particular Country Afghanistan, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, Copts, Egypt, Iraq, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Lake Chad, Sahel, Somalia, Syria, Tony Blair, Women, Yemen

This is one of the fifty five photos that is part of the photo story "Renewed day by day," commissioned by World Watch Monitor, exploring the extensive damage to churches in Egypt's Minya region that took place in late August 2013.

Attacks by members of the Islamic State group against Egypt’s Coptic Christian community “were among the deadliest acts of religious persecution” last year, according a new report presented in Washington DC yesterday, 13 September. “Fifty-three per cent of ISIS attacks against the public in 2017 were aimed at the Coptic . . . Read More

Saudi Arabia is modernising, but will this mean greater freedom for religious minorities?

February 23, 2018 Saudi Arabia Apostasy, Bibles, Churches, House churches, Houthis, Iran, Islamic extremism, King Salman, Minorities, Mohammad bin Salman, Muttawah, Religious freedom, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Sunni, Syria, Wahhabism, Yemen

The political landscape in the strict Islamic Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is changing, and quickly. A charismatic crown prince seems determined to modernise his country and even speaks of a shift towards a more “moderate” Islam. But will the changes taking place in Saudi also ease the situation for members . . . Read More

Father Tom releases book about 18 months’ captivity in Yemen

February 7, 2018 Yemen Aden, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Ansar al-Sharia, Catholics, Hodeidah, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Kidnapping, Sana'a, Taiz, Tom Uzhunnalil, Yemen

The Indian priest who spent 18 months in captivity in Yemen has released an autobiography. Fr. Tom Uzhunnalil, who was freed in September 2017, has titled the book ‘By the Grace of God’. The priest, who is 58, presented his book during a meeting of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of . . . Read More

Iran protests saw people ‘turn their backs on political Islam’

January 25, 2018 Iran Ayatollah Khamenei, Ayatollah Khomeini, Donald Trump, Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis, Iran, Iraq, Islamic extremism, Mashhad, Shia, Syria, USA, Yemen

Ayatollah Khomeini spoke about human rights and religious freedom when he returned to Iran 40 years ago. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

Iranians are challenging the legitimacy of the Islamic Republic because corruption and inequality undermine its ideals, a human rights activist has claimed. In an interview with World Watch Monitor, Mansour Borji, Iranian-born advocacy director of UK-based human rights charity Article 18, said the street protests that spread across the country . . . Read More

Freedom of thought ‘regressing on a global scale’

December 6, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Afghanistan, Apostasy, Asia Bibi, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei, China, Comoros, Education, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Human rights, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Qatar, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, The Gambia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

There are many Pakistani Christian women like Aasiya Noreen who live in fear of the Blasphemy law in their country and the (potential of) abuse. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

The 2017 Freedom of Thought Report, presented yesterday (5 December), should be alarming “to all who care about freedom of thought and expression”, as it shows “a pattern of regression on a global scale”, says its editor, Bob Churchill. The report, published by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) . . . Read More

Saudi Arabia to reopen ancient church as ‘gift’ to visiting Lebanese Patriarch

November 16, 2017 Saudi Arabia Churches, Islamic extremism, King Salman, Mohammad bin Salman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman, has reportedly announced plans to restore and re-open a 900-year-old church as a “gift” to the Lebanese Patriarch. The church is to be used as a centre for inter-religious dialogue, according to Catholic news agency Fides. The Maronite Patriarch, Bechara Boutros al-Rai, has . . . Read More

Fr Tom: my faith got me through 18 months’ captivity

September 14, 2017 Yemen Aden, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Ansar al-Sharia, Hodeidah, Islamic State, Pope Francis, Sana'a, Taiz, Tom Uzhunnalil, Yemen

The Indian missionary priest released this week after 18 months as a hostage in Yemen has said his Christian faith helped him to survive the ordeal. Fr Tom Uzhunnalil, a priest in the Salesian order, met Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday, the day after his release. The priest . . . Read More

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