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Nicaragua: Ortega Regime Expels President of Nicaraguan Episcopal Conference

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – As part of an ongoing crackdown on Nicaraguan Catholics and Evangelical Christians, Nicaragua’s dictatorial regime has expelled Bishop Carlos Enrique Herrera, president of the Nicaraguan Episcopal Conference, to Guatemala, Christian Daily International (CDI) reports. ‘

Herrera was arrested after a meeting with members of the Episcopal Conference in Managua earlier this month, CDI reports. He was deported to Guatemala where he is staying at a residence of the Order of Friars Minor, to which he belongs.

Concerning the banishment of Herrerra, Nicaraguan Miguel Mendoza of media in exile reported: “The bishop of Jinotega, Monsignor Carlos Enrique Herrera, has been exiled from Nicaragua. First, they shut down the diocese’s Facebook page, and then they expelled him from his own country—all because he called the Sandinista mayor Leónidas Centeno sacrilegious for disrespecting the Holy Mass by ordering loud music and dances, which made it impossible to hear the service last Sunday.”

Herrera is the third bishop of the Episcopal Conference to be expelled by the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, CDI reports.
“Hostility toward Christians in Nicaragua continues to intensify, with those who speak out against President Ortega and his government viewed as destabilizing agents,” the Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization explains in a website report.

“The situation has deteriorated significantly since 2018, when widespread protests broke out against the country’s dictatorial regime. Christians have been among those to raise their voice—but it’s coming at an alarming cost.”

Ruled by the oppressive dictatorial regime of Daniel Ortega, Nicaragua ranks 30 on the Open Doors World Watch List 2024 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted.