Christian Mother Killed, Boy Kidnapped in Somalia

Al Qaeda-linked rebels continue campaign to rid country of Christianity.

NAIROBI, Kenya (Morning Star News) – Islamic extremists from the Al Shabaab rebel group are suspected of killing a Christian woman in one town last week and kidnapping a 13-year-old boy from another, sources said. The militants, who have vowed to rid Somalia of its underground church, are suspected of killing Fatuma Isak Elmi, 35, on […]

Armed Muslims in Nigeria Kill Christians in their Homes

Ethnic Fulani herdsmen attack villages on Kaduna/Plateau state border.

ADU, Nigeria (Morning Star News) – Gabriel Anthony, 25, was steeped in quiet, prayerful devotion at 5 a.m. on Sunday (Sept. 1) in this northern Nigerian village when he heard gunshots. “Within minutes, bullets were piercing into our rooms,” Anthony told Morning Star News. “I escaped from my room by jumping through the window.” A half […]

Christians in Central African Republic Vulnerable as Chaos Continues

Threat of Islamic law looms as church suffers from Islamist coup.

WASHINGTON (Morning Star News) – More than five months after Islamist rebels seized control of the Christian-majority Central African Republic (CAR), Christians remain vulnerable to atrocities and the threat of imposition of Islamic law. Rebel groups and Islamist mercenaries from Chad and Sudan joined forces in December to form a militant coalition called Seleka, which took […]

New Law in Bolivia Aims to Control Churches, Impose Beliefs, Protestant Leaders Say

Thousands march against measures granting government power over congregational affairs.

COCHABAMBA, Bolivia (Morning Star News) – Protestant church leaders in Bolivia are trying to revoke a new law they say aims to “impose contrary beliefs” and “denies us the right to be a church.” Asserting that Law 351 is unconstitutional, the National Association of Evangelicals of Bolivia (ANDEB) will file suit this week before the Plurinational […]

U.S.-Iranian Pastor’s Prison Term Upheld amid Crackdown on Christians in Iran

Another convert from Islam sentenced to 10 years behind bars.

LOS ANGELES (Morning Star News) – Harsh treatment of Christians before the June 15 election of Iran’s new president has continued since Hassan Rouhani took office on Aug. 3, including the upholding yesterday of pastor Saeed Abedini’s eight-year prison sentence. International calls for the release of the U.S-Iranian pastor, convicted of threatening “national security” by practicing […]

Muslim Mob Injures Church Leaders, Choir Members in Nigeria

Minor dispute leads to incitement of gang with iron rods, knives.

ABUJA, Nigeria (Morning Star News) – A Muslim mob with knives and iron rods injured several members of an Anglican church in Nasarawa state on Aug. 17 over a dispute about less than 1 cent in change, area Christians said. Three pastors, four elders and choir members of the St. James Anglican Cathedral were wounded in […]

Impunity Said to Abet Persecution of Christians in Nigeria

National Christian leader calls Islamic extremist assaults ‘genocide.’

ABUJA, Nigeria (Morning Star News) – Impunity for terrorists and state-sponsored discrimination against Christians in northern Nigeria has led not to sectarian war but to “genocide,” the general secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) told Morning Star News. Echoing a report by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) asserting this week that […]

Islamic Extremists in Somalia Abduct Christian Mother of Two Young Children

Husband receives message from her; since then, only threats from kidnappers.

NAIROBI, Kenya (Morning Star News) – Islamic extremists suspected to be rebel Al Shabaab militants have kidnapped a Christian mother of two young children in Somalia and threatened her husband because of their faith, her husband said. Three masked men abducted Shamsa Enow Hussein, 28, on Aug. 5 in Bulo Marer, Lower Shebelle Region, at 7 […]

Hindu Extremists Attack Pastor’s Mother in India

Assailants threaten to ‘cut to pieces’ ministry leader, wife.

NEW DELHI (Morning Star News) – Reena Behl answered the doorbell of the home she shares with her son and his wife in Rajasthan state at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday (Aug. 13), and four men wearing motorcycle helmets demanded to see her son, a pastor. Because of the helmets, the 51-year-old resident of Rajapark, Jaipur, could […]

Christians Targeted in Pro-Morsi Violence in Egypt

At least two Coptic Christians killed; 27 church buildings attacked.

CAIRO, Egypt, August 14, 2013 (Morning Star News) – In the violence that exploded across Egypt today, supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi attacked scores of church buildings and Christian-owned homes and businesses in response to national security forces breaking up two protest camps in downtown Cairo. At least two Coptic Christians were killed […]