Year: 2003

Vietnam’s War Against Christianity

Communist regimes like Vietnam have never been known for their tolerance of religion but recently in 2003 Hanoi has escalated the persecution of its “hill tribe” Christians to an unprecedented level. In the Central Highlands of Vietnam the indigenous Montagnards or Degar Peoples are facing arrest, beatings, torture and even murder at the hands of Vietnamese security forces. This persecution did not go unnoticed this month in a damming report released by the US International Commission For Religious Freedom that stated, “the increased repression of religious freedom has been reportedly sanctioned at the highest levels of the Vietnamese government.”

Pastor and Six Family Members Burned to Death in Nigeria

A zealous Christian preacher in the northern Nigeria city of Kano and six members of his family died in a house fire on April 22. Christian leaders in the city believe Muslim militants deliberately set the fatal blaze.

Palestinian Diplomat in Morocco on the War in Iraq, Zionism, and Israel

(MEMRI) — On April 26, 2003, the Islamic website Islam Online (1) hosted Wasef Mansour, a diplomat with the Palestinian mission in Morocco, in an online discussion titled “What Israel Gains From the Occupation of Iraq.” (2) During the discussion, Mansour held Israel responsible for the looting of museums and banks in Baghdad, called for Jihad against ‘the occupiers’ of Iraq, Palestine, and three cities under Spanish rule regarded by him as Moroccan, denied Israel’s right to exist, and compared President George W. Bush to Hitler and other tyrannical leaders. The following are excerpts from Mansour’s discussion with visitors to the website:

Vietnamese Christians Suffer Greatly

Vietnamese authorities continue their clampdown on house churches in their country. A Vietnam observer who wishes to remain anonymous names 12 ways authorities are persecuting Christians:

The Muslim World On “The Fall of Baghdad”

THE PALESTINIANS:

“Whether consciously or unconsciously, the Americans are paving a long, broad path for the death of tens of thousands, maybe even more, of their people. The American madness will bring nothing but counter-madness. They [Americans] have begun an era of destructive and lethal war for human beings in order to feed their aggressive military economic machine, and they will bear the responsibility for it.” Al-Ayyam (PA), April 10, 2003.

Lao Christian Leaders Arrested

Lao Christians are paying dearly for their faith as authorities continue to crack down on the Christian movement. Lao authorities closed four churches recently and arrested several of their leaders.

Eritrea Jails 170 Protestant Christians

A total of 170 Protestant Christians have been jailed, beaten and threatened with death by Eritrean security forces in a harsh crackdown during February and March.

Israel Prepared for War; Bridges for Peace Prepared

Jerusalem, Israel (Bridges for Peace) — Here in Israel, we have watched the interplay on the Iraq Crisis play out for months. On several occasions, it seemed that the war would start within days, and then a diplomatic detour put it off. Yet, all along, it was apparent that the battle would ultimately be fought if Saddam and his sons did not stand down and come clean on the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in Iraq. It was like a game of “hide and go seek” to watch UN Weapons Inspectors travel here and there, sometimes arriving just as trucks were leaving sites. More important than what was found during their inspections, is what was not found. The western nations that sold Hussein the raw materials or processing equipment to make his WMD know more than the public or the media what is there and what is missing and unreported.

Five more believers in Nepal were jailed briefly and released

As reported in the March 12 issue of Missions Insider three Christian workers were arrested in western Nepal in late February on suspicion of engaging in illegal religious activity simply because Bibles and Christian literature were found in their bags. Now Christian Aid has learned that five more Christians who went to visit the jailed brothers were similarly arrested.

Nepal: Three Believers Wrongly Jailed

A gospel worker and two local believers were arrested and jailed on proselytism charges in western Nepal last month. Details of the arrest were made known to Christian Aid just this week.

Muslim Extremist Murders Kurdish Christian

Kurdish Christian Ziwar Mohammed Ismaeel was shot dead in front of his taxi stand last month in Zakho, the northern-most city in the Kurdish safe-haven of Northern Iraq.

Uzbekistan Christians Forced Underground

Presbyterian Christians are forced to meet secretly in the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan as the authorities are increasing pressure on non Muslim groups, ASSIST News Service monitored Thursday March 13.

Azerbaijan: Two-Week Prison For Pentecostal Leaders

Amid growing pressure on Protestant congregations, two leaders of the unregistered Pentecostal church Living Stones have been arrested and given fifteen-day prison terms, Protestant sources in the Azerbaijani capital Baku have told Keston News Service. The two – Yusuf Farkhadov and Kasym Kasymov – were detained in Sumgait, a town close to Baku, when police and National Security Ministry officers raided a prayer meeting last Friday (18 January) held in a private flat in the town’s 9th micro-district. The two were given the two-week prison term under Article 310 of the Administrative Code, which punishes “petty hooliganism”. “All they were doing was praying,” one church member told Keston. They are serving their term in police detention cells in Sumgait.

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