Russia Arrested Ukrainian Religious Leader While Preaching at a St. Petersburg Messianic Congregation
Russia has brought an administrative case against a religious leader under the country’s controversial new package of anti-terrorist laws.
Christian Persecution
Church Demolitions in Cuba Intensifying
The first half of 2016 has seen church demolitions in Cuba gather pace as the government crackdown on freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) on the island continues. The authorities have also begun to confiscate 1,400 Assemblies of God (AOG) churches that were earmarked for seizure in 2015, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide.
Christians Wait for New Law in Egypt to Authorize New Churches
Egypt is scheduled to vote as early as next month on a law that would ease the country’s historic restrictions on church construction.
Global religious freedom conference coming to DC
The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has decided to move a May 2017 summit on Christian persecution from Moscow to Washington, D.C., following Russia’s passage of a controversial law curtailing evangelism.
Christianity Grows In Myanmar Despite Persecution
Christianity in Myanmar is growing at a dramatic rate despite threats from Buddhist nationals, according to the UN Population Fund.
Egypt: Reconciliation denys justice to Christians
In Egypt, so-called reconciliation meetings often intimidate Coptic Christians into surrendering their legal rights while their Muslim assailants avoid any punishment for their violence.
Nigerian knifed for not keeping Ramadan fast
A Christian was stabbed in Kaduna state, Nigeria, this month just because he was not participating in the annual Ramadan fast.
India: Man beaten for defending Christian cemetery
Last month in Punjab state, India, a Christian was severely beaten after he protested the desecration of a Christian graveyard by local Hindus.
Sudan: Eritreans denied right of Asylum
Last month, Sudanese authorities deported at least 442 Eritrean refugees.
Nigeria: Muslim herdsmen kill three Christians
Muslim Fulani herdsmen killed three Christian villagers in Nigeria’s Kaduna state last week.
Iran: Christian prisoner has health issues
A Christian prisoner remains ill while Iranian officials refuse to transfer her to a hospital to receive the required medical care.
Nigeria: Muslim Mob kills Christian for Facebook post
Last month a Christian was killed in Nigeria after his chat on Facebook ended in an accusation of blasphemy against Islam’s controversial prophet.
Kenya to institute repressive religious regulations
Pastors are opposing new government regulations aimed at ‘gagging and muzzling’ the Christians in Kenya.
Sudanese Pastors Acquitted, Released
Sudanese Pastors Yat Michael and Peter Yein Reith were both acquitted Wednesday by a court in Khartoum after serving months in prison on charges that included espionage and waging war against the state.
Iran: Religious minorities executed for “enmity against God”
A human rights group recently reported that the Islamic Republic of Iran had executed members of religious minorities who were convicted of “enmity against God,” according to The Christian Post.
India: Pastor Eventually Dies After Beating
A 70-year-old Indian pastor who was brutally beaten by Hindu nationalists in Tukkuguda two years ago has just died.
Indian Pastor Accused of Illegal Conversions
The pastor of a church in the village of Raiguda in India’s Orissa state was arrested earlier this month for “illegally” converting 300 people to Christianity.
Iran: Two Christians Recalled to Jail
Two Iranian Christians have been sent to serve the prison sentences they received in 2013.
Nigeria: Church Saved from Bomb
Mass murder in Plateau State was narrowly averted July 12 after a security guard spotted a bomb at a church’s entrance and threw it away just before it exploded.
Zanzibar: Islamists Take Church’s Hall
Islamists on the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar off Tanzania’s coast have driven a local pastor into hiding after taking over his church’s rented hall.