Christians in India Wounded, Jailed, Expelled

Extremists in three states put Hindu nationalism, tribal custom over religious freedom.

NEW DELHI (Morning Star News) – Christians suffered serious head injuries, expulsion from home and incarceration based on false witness as Hindu extremists continued their reign of terror in India this month, sources said.   In the southern state of Kerala, some 100 Hindu extremists on March 10 attacked a Brethren Assembly church service in Chirayinkeezzh […]

Islamic Mobs Destroy Christian Area of Lahore, Pakistan

Authorities order police to allow rampage, but arrest 150 Christians for protesting.

LAHORE, Pakistan (Morning Star News) – Muslim mobs upset over an alleged derogatory comment about the prophet of Islam burned down more than 180 Christian-owned houses and shops and at least two church buildings here on Saturday (March 9) after authorities told police to “let them vent their grief and anger,” officials said.   Lahore’s impoverished […]

Inquiry into Death of Pakistani Christian in Custody Faces a World of Obstacles

Political, religious and societal dynamics favor the murderers of 65-year-old tortured to death.

LAHORE, Pakistan (Morning Star News) – The murderers of a 65-year-old Christian in Pakistan are not likely to face justice in this world.   A miasma of political and religious dynamics makes it unlikely. A Pakistani court has ordered a judicial inquiry into the death of Niyamat Masih, who died in police custody from torture. Officers tortured […]

Pastor in Pakistan Released on Bail after Mistaken Blasphemy Accusation

Complainant withdraws statement, but accused still faces charge, threat of violence.

LAHORE, Pakistan (Morning Star News) – In a rare instance in Pakistan, a judge granted bail to a pastor accused of blaspheming Islam because the complainant admitted that he had mistakenly accused him, attorneys said.   Karma Patras, a 55-year-old pastor of Bado Malhi, Sangla Hill, had been languishing in Sheikhupura District Jail since October after […]

Two Pastors in India Arrested after Being Beaten, Threatened

Hindu nationalist mob tries to force them to worship idols in temple.

NEW DELHI (Morning Star News) – Pastor Mallik Arjun knew something was wrong when he received a call from the mobile phone of his friend and fellow pastor in Gadag District, Karnataka state – but it was a stranger on the other end of the line.   The stranger told him that pastor Nagesh Naik was […]

Violence against Christians Spreading in India

Maharashtra state increasingly vulnerable, rights leaders say.

MUMBAI, India (Morning Star News) – Hindu extremist attacks on Christians in Maharashtra state could expand even as violence elsewhere in India grows in areas where extremist groups had not beeen so active, Christian leaders said.   Ram Puniyani of the All India Secular Forum said at press conference in Mumbai this month that Maharashtra is […]

Alleged Kidnapper Threatens Family of Christian Girl in Pakistan

Police refuse to arrest politician’s aide who allegedly forced 15-year-old to convert, marry.

LAHORE, Pakistan (Morning Star News) – A powerful Pakistani politician’s aid who abducted a Christian girl from her home in Karachi has warned her parents that the same fate awaits their other daughters unless they drop charges against him and leave the city, the family said.   Khursheed Bibi told Morning Star News that Ghaji Khan, […]

Under-Reporting Obscures Martyrdom of Christians in India

Anti-Christian hostility disputed in three of four deaths.

NEW DELHI (Morning Star News) – Four Christians in India died for their faith last year, but incomplete information obscured the anti-Christian hostility in three of the deaths, sources said.   In Tamil Nadu and West Bengal states where the killings took place, area Christians assert that the murders were rooted in opposition to Christianity; specifically, […]

Christian Girl in Pakistan Allegedly Forced to Convert, Marry

Official’s aide, accused of running prostitution ring, kidnapped 15-year-old, mother says.

KARACHI, Pakistan (Morning Star News) – A powerful Pakistani official’s aide who is allegedly running a prostitution ring here has taken a Christian girl from her home and forced her to convert to Islam and marry him, according to the girl’s family.   Khursheed Bibi, a midwife and mother of 15-year-old Asma Masih, told Morning Star News […]

Will We Be Their Voice?

Bill would create special envoy for religious minorities in the Middle East/South Central Asia.

(Morning Star News) – Christians worldwide just celebrated the birth of Jesus. For many in the West this was a festive season marked by worship services, gift-giving and time with family and friends. But for the church in the Middle East, fear of persecution cast a long, dark shadow over the Christmas holiday.   Oppression […]