Iraq: Serial Attacks on Churches Continue
A car-bomb exploded outside a Chaldean church in northern Iraq yesterday, injuring two people, a Baghdad bishop said. The blast is the 10th reported attack on Iraqi churches in two weeks.
Syria
Iraq: Coordinated Blasts Rock Churches
Four Iraqi churches and three convents were damaged in coordinated bomb blasts yesterday morning, the day many Iraqi Christians celebrate either Epiphany or Christmas Eve according to some Eastern liturgical calendars. At least six people were injured, one seriously.
Iran Authorities Whipping Christian Couple For “Apostasy”, Investigators Report
An Iranian Christian couple have been punished by whipping for “apostasy” from Islam in a case that has underscored concerns about widespread persecution of Christians in Iran, a well-informed advocacy group said Tuesday, November 6.
Iraq: Christian Sisters Slain in Robbery Attempt
The murder of two Christian women in their Kirkuk home this week highlights growing insecurity facing Christians, often targeted for money in war-torn Iraq.
Iraq Militants Kill Christian Official
A high profile official from Iraq’s Assyrian Christian community and former deputy director of Iraqi Airways has been shot and killed by militants near his home, BosNewsLife monitored Thursday, February 8.
Catholic Villagers Attack, Vandalize Baptists
Maronite Catholics attacked a newly-built, independent Baptist church near Beirut this month, mauling churchgoers preparing to host war refugees from southern Lebanon.
Secret Documents Reveal Ethnic Cleansing of Christians in Iraq, Leader says
Secret documents show Saddam Hussein’s regime and local Kurdish leaders were involved in the “ethnic cleansing”, “gassing” and “Islamization” of Assyrian Christians in Northern Iraq, with international religious aid organizations refusing to intervene, an Assyrian official claimed Wednesday, August 4.
Christians Around The World Pray For Iran Government
Christians in Iran and around the world prayed Tuesday, June 27, for Iran’s government, amid concerns over persecution of churches and political opponents in the Islamic nation.
Lebanon Christians Attacked, Church Stoned, By Angry Muslims
Lebanon’s Interior Minister resigned late Sunday, February 5, after an estimated 20,000 angry Muslims not only torched the Danish Embassy but also attacked the Christian community in the capital Beirut over published cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammad.
Turkey’s Mistreatment of Christians Becoming More Brazen
Bektas Erdogan never expected his Christian faith of 11 years to jeopardize his career as a fashion designer in Turkey.
Commander of Saddam Hussein’s ‘Army of Muhammad’ Confesses: We Received Money and Arms from Syria
January 19, 2005 (MEMRI) — The following are excerpts from the televised confessions of Muayed Al-Nasseri, who commanded Saddam Hussein’s “Army of Muhammad” throughout 2004. The confessions were aired by an Iraqi TV channel that operates from the UAE, Al-Fayhaa TV, and were monitored and translated by the MEMRI TV Project.
Jailed Iranian Christian Pressured to Return to Islam
Eleven months after Iranian police arrested Hamid Pourmand for converting to Christianity, authorities at Tehran’s Evin Prison continue to pressure the former Muslim to return to Islam.
Iran Christian Colonel Jailed With Known Dissidents, report says
An Iranian Colonel who, despite Western protests, was jailed last month for his alleged “illegal” conversion to Christianity is held at Tehran’s notorious maximum-security prison with well-known political and religious dissidents, a Christian news agency reported late Friday, March 11.
Iraqi Christians Fleeing to Jordan, Syria
A quiet but steady hemorrhaging of Iraq’s ancient Christian presence is underway and little is being doWritten threats, kidnappings, bombings and murder by Muslim extremists are driving thousands of Iraq’s minority Christian population out of their ancestral homeland, fleeing for safety to neighboring Jordan and Syria.ne to stem the flow.
Concern Mounts for Jailed Iranian Christian
Concern is growing among Iran’s evangelical community for the safety of a pastor arrested four weeks ago by the Iranian security police.
Open Doors: Iraqi Christians Again Living In Fear
Open Doors with Brother Andrew – a worldwide ministry to the Persecuted Church – has received information from several sources that Iraqi Christians and churches are seriously affected by the internal turmoil in Iraq.
Turkish Authorities Block Use of Protestant Church
Seven months after the newly constructed Diyarbakir Evangelical Church opened in southeast Turkey, a local council under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism has again protested against the building’s use as a place of worship.
Turkish Pastor Put On Trial In Diyarbakir
ISTANBUL, May 7 (Compass) — Protestant pastor Ahmet Guvener goes on trial in Turkey’s southeastern city of Diyarbakir in late May, accused by the state prosecutor of making illegal changes in the architectural plan of his nearly completed church building.
Turkish Pastor Put On Trial In Diyarbakir
Protestant pastor Ahmet Guvener goes on trial in Turkey’s southeastern city of Diyarbakir in late May, accused by the state prosecutor of making illegal changes in the architectural plan of his nearly completed church building.
Lebanese Christians Want End to Syrian Yoke
Anti-Syrian sentiment is rising among Christians in Lebanon, evidenced by bold comments by Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir in his visit to the US last week, and during protests at a Beirut university this week.