China tightens its ‘choke-hold’ on churches, enforces ban on children worshipping
China has tightened its ‘choke-hold’ on churches across the country in recent weeks, according to the rights and religious freedom group China Aid.
Christian Persecution
Russian Anti-Missionary Law Mainly Hampers Christians
Concerns among Russian Christians that the government’s antiterrorism legislation, adopted last year, would take away their religious freedom have been proven true.
Al-Shabaab Kills Four More Christian Men in Lamu, Kenya
International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that on September 6, 2017, four Christians were killed in Hindi by al-Shabaab, Christians’ main persecution threat in Kenya.
American Pastor Imprisoned in Turkey Faces New Charges
Andrew Brunson, the American pastor who has been imprisoned in Turkey for nearly a year on dubious terrorism charges, is now facing new charges: ‘gathering state secrets for espionage, attempting to overthrow the Turkish parliament and government, and to change the constitutional order.’
Mother in Uganda Beaten, Driven from Home for Embracing Christianity
A woman in eastern Uganda who put her faith in Christ is in hiding after her husband beat her for leaving Islam, sources said.
Pastor in India Perseveres amid Persecution by Hindu Extremists
A band of Hindu extremists who had snuck into a house-church service beat a pastor with steel rods and sticks, one of them yelling that they would stop if he shouted, ‘Hail, Lord Ram [Jai Sri Ram]!’
Christians Fear Crackdown on Religion Under Evangelism Ban in Nepal
While attacks against the Christian minority has increased in Nepal, the Himalayan country’s parliament passed a bill criminalizing religious conversion and the “hurting of religious sentiment,” aiming to restrict evangelism. The move is likely to further escalate Christian persecution.
Pastors Arrested in Sudan as Government Moves to Take Over Church
Police in Sudan arrested and interrogated seven church leaders last week in Omdurman, Sudan before releasing them on bail, sources said.
Egypt Closes One Church, Blocks Worship at Another
Authorities have closed a church that serves three villages in Upper Egypt on the pretext that area Muslims object to it – one of at least 15 Christian worship sites shuttered in the bishopric of Minya, sources said.
Al-Shabaab Beheads 3 Christians, Burns Alive Another in Kenya as Christians Plead for Help in Camps
Al-Shabaab fighters reportedly killed four Christian men in Kenya’s Lamu County last week, beheading three and burning alive another.
Nepal Bill Criminalizes Religious Conversion
The Nepali parliament passed a Bill on 8 August criminalizing religious conversion and the ‘hurting of religious sentiment’. It is expected to become law once the approval of the president has been given.
New Bishop for Syrian Christians Brings Hope Following Genocide, Over 330,000 Deaths
Syriac Orthodox Christians in the northeastern city of Hasakeh celebrated on Saturday the inauguration of Archbishop Maurice Amseeh, giving the community a bishop for the first time in four years, since the last one left the country.
Underground Churches in North Korea Growing
Christianity is spreading in North Korea as more North Koreans are rejecting the regime of Kim Jung-un and searching for faith a defector told The Telegraph.
Pentecostal church in Ethiopia told to close after it was attacked by mob
A Pentecostal church in Ethiopia has been ordered to stop meeting in a residential area, in the wake of a mob attack on the church, after which a church member was arrested for illegal activities that incited religious clashes.
Russia’s Crackdown on Evangelism Leads to Prosecution of Mostly Christians 1 Year After ‘Anti-Missionary’ Law
Evangelical Protestants make up the majority of the 181 cases prosecuted by Russian authorities under the country’s notorious ‘anti-missionary’ laws, which came into force last July, according to a report. Christians were also prosecuted in Crimea, which Russia occupied in 2014.
Christian Persecution in India Hits Record High in First Half of 2017
As reported earlier this year, the first quarter of 2017 saw 248 persecution incidents wherein Christians were harassed, threatened or attacked for their faith in India. More recent records indicate the number of incidents in first six months of 2017 is now up to 410 incidents. This represents an enormous increase in persecution as there were only 441 incidents reported in 2016 for the entire year.
North Korea is executing, torturing and enslaving those who practice religion, US says in new report
The North Korean regime has continued to position itself as one of the world’s worst persecutors of the religious, torturing and killing people who practice their faith, according to a State Department report released Tuesday.
State Government in India Passes Anti-Conversion Bill Despite Widespread Opposition
International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that the Jharkhand Assembly, a state legislative body in northeastern India, passed the Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Bill-2017, also known as ‘Jharkhand Dharma Swatantra Adhiniyam,’ on Saturday, August 12. The bill will now be sent to the governor, following whose approval it would go to the president for final assent. The bill was passed by the BJP-led government despite significant opposition from religious groups, civil society, and the tribal groups across Jharkhand.
Kidnapped Pastor in Nigeria Released from Five Days of Captivity
Suspecting corrupt police and accusing the Nigerian government of failing to contain a rash of kidnappings, Christian leaders announced that a pastor abducted last week was freed on Wednesday (Aug. 9).
Christian Rights Activists in Vietnam Charged with Serious ‘Crimes’
After 19 long months of investigative detention following his Dec. 16, 2015 arrest, renowned human rights attorney Nguyen Van Dai was finally charged with a crime on July 30.