Kidnapped German Evangelical Freed In Afghanistan
A German evangelical development worker who was kidnapped at gunpoint from a restaurant in the Afghan capital Kabul has been freed, her organization and Afghan officials confirmed Monday, August 20.
Christian Persecution
Chinese Jailed Elderly House Church Activist Near Death, Family Says
An elderly jailed house church activist remained in “life danger” Saturday, August 18, as her health rapidly deteriorates because of abuses in prison, her family said.
Violence Against Dalit Christians Kills Two In Indian State
Tensions remained high Sunday, August 19, in India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu after a reported crackdown by militants on Dalit Christians in which a pastors’ brother and a local official were killed.
Pakistan: Religious Minorities Told to Convert or Die
Christians and Hindus in northern Pakistan have received dozens of letters threatening them with death if they refuse to become Muslims, church sources and a police official said yesterday.
Egyptian Surgeon ‘Held Hostage’ by Saudi Government Released
The Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC) — www.persecution.org – has told ANS that it has just learned that an Egyptian Christian surgeon that had been held captive by the Saudi government is on his way home after ICC publicized his story.
Concerns Over Jailed Baptist Pastors In Turkmenistan And Azerbaijan
There was international concern Tuesday, August 14, about the fate of two detained Baptist leaders in the former Soviet republics of Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.
Taliban Release Two South Korean Hostages In Afghanistan
The militant Taliban movement on Monday, August 13, released two of the 21 remaining South Korean Christians held hostage in Afghanistan, BosNewsLife monitored.
Iraqis Turn To Christianity Despite Persecution And Bloodshed, Missionaries Say
Despite persecution and bloodshed thousands of Bibles have been distributed in northern Iraq and “many Iraqis” are becoming Christians, missionaries told BosNewsLife in a statement monitored Sunday, August 12.
Two-year prison term for Baptist pastor in Azerbaijan on trumped up charges
Baptist Pastor Zaur Balaev has been sentenced to two years in jail, after being convicted of using violence against a state representative.
Egypt Christians Detained For Their Involvement In Website
Two Egyptian Christians remained detained late Thursday, August 9, after police detained them for their work on the Web site of a Christian Arab group based in Canada.
Egypt: Convert in Hiding After Lawyer Backs Out
An Egyptian convert to Christianity who filed suit for his conversion to be officially recognized is in hiding after his attorney announced he would withdraw from the case yesterday.
Egypt: Muslim Sues for Right to Convert to Christianity
A Muslim convert to Christianity filed suit against Egypt last week for refusing to legally recognize his change of religion, sparking a reactionary lawsuit by Muslim clerics and death threats against his lawyer.
Laos Security Forces Kill 13 Christians In Major Crackdown, report
Security forces and others have killed at least 13 Christians in Laos in recent weeks as part of a crackdown on Hmong villagers “falsely accused of stirring rebel dissent”, a Christian news agency reported Tuesday, August 7.
Pastor Killed In Philippines Bomb Blast
Christians in the Philippines on Saturday, August 4, mourned the death of a Protestant pastor who was killed in one of two explosions that ripped through a bus terminal in southern Koronadal City. The blast Friday, August 3, also wounded up to 10 passengers, police and media reports said.
Kazakhstan Baptists Fear More Persecution
Baptist Christians in the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan faced an uncertain weekend Saturday, August 4, amid reports that authorities barred a mother and her young child from entering their home because of their involvement in a Baptist church.
Pakistan: Jail Officials Beat Christian, Halt Bible Classes
Pakistani officials have halted all Bible classes for Christian prisoners in a Punjab jail, isolating the inmate who taught the classes and barring a local pastor from his weekly visits, a non-governmental organization (NGO) working in prisons reported.
India: Christian Worker Beaten to Death in Assam
A Christian advocacy group has asked the chief minister of the northeastern state of Assam to provide protection to believers after unidentified assailants suspected to be Hindu extremists beat a Christian worker to death in Guwahati.
Turkmenistan Deports Baptist Pastor
A Russian Baptist Pastor spent another Sunday, August 5, without his family after he was deported from Turkmenistan for his church activities, fellow Christians and human rights watchers said.
Egyptian Surgeon Held Hostage By Saudi Government Due To His Christian Faith
The Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC) www.persecution.org has learned that an Egyptian Christian working in Saudi Arabia as a surgeon has been repeatedly blocked from going home for over two years. The Saudi government has intentionally run him in circles, promising he can leave, then refusing to let him go.
India Christian Boy “Beheaded”, Christian “Stoned” By Hindu Militants, Missionaries Say
Tensions remained high Monday, July 30, among Christians in the Indian state of Kerala amid reports that the body of a 14-year-old Christian boy was found on the railway track near a Christian school while another Christian was allegedly killed by Hindu militants, missionaries said.