Chinese Christian Lawyer “Held Hostage” For 50 Days
Abducted Chinese Christian human rights attorney Gao Zhisheng was missing 50 days on Thursday, March 26, amid “increasing concern for his life,” human rights investigator said.
Human Rights
Family Missing Colombia Pastor Appeals For Help Amid Threats And Violence (Worthy News In-Depth)
The young family of a missing evangelical pastor in Colombia was still waiting Wednesday, March 25, for Colombian authorities to launch an official investigation into his disappearance six months ago, amid concerns he may be the latest victim of violence against Christian leaders in the South American country.
Bulgaria To Appeal European Court Ruling In Orthodox Row
Bulgaria’s government is planning to appeal a ruling of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which found Bulgaria guilty of violating religious rights of over 100 Bulgarian Orthodox priests, bishops and lay-workers, who were violently thrown out of their churches, Worthy News learned Monday, March 23.
China Postpones Trial Of Detained Christian Bookstore Owner
A Chinese court has postponed the trial of an owner of Christian bookstore, who has been detained since last year for the “illegal distribution of Bibles and Christian literature,” well-informed observers told Worthy News Monday, March 23.
Eritrea Releases Elderly Detained Christians
Three elderly Christian men have been released on bail from a military prison camp and police facility in Eritrea, Christian rights investigators confirmed Friday, March 20.
Libya “Detains” And “Tortures” Four Christians For Leaving Islam, Group Says
Libya’s feared intelligence service has “detained and tortured” four Christians for converting from Islam, as part of a wider crackdown on people embracing Christianity, human rights group said in comments monitored by Worthy News Thursday, March 12.
China Closes ‘House Church’ Law Firm
One of China’s prominent law firms, known for defending house churches and other human rights cases, was weighing its legal options Monday, March 9, after it was forced to shut down for six months for “illegally” hiring a Christian attorney.
Belarus Deports Danish Christians
Two Danish men are being deported from Belarus on charges of expressing “ideas of a religious nature”, after dozens of foreign Christians were already expelled from the former Soviet republic.
Pakistan Christians Protest Police “Torture” And Sexual Abuse
A tense calm returned Monday, February 2, to an impoverished area of the Pakistani city of Sargodha where police “tortured” Christian residents, which included beatings and sexually molesting girls and women, local Christians told Worthy News.
Eritrea Christians Die In Prison, Nearly 3,000 Detained
At least two detained Christians have died this month in Eritrea after a “long period of torture” in a notorious military prison camp, while the number of Christians jailed in the African nation because of their faith approaches 3,000, a well-informed Christian rights group said Wednesday, January 21.
Karen Girl Raped and Killed by Burma Army Soldier
Villagers of the mainly Christian Karen minority in Burma on Monday, January 5, were mourning the death of a seven-year old girl who was raped and murdered by at least one government soldier, the latest in a series of sexual abuses of minorities in the country, investigators said.
Tajikistan Churches Facing Closure In New Year
A major Christian rights group warned Tuesday, December 23, that many churches in the former Soviet republic of Tajikistan in 2009, if a new draft law requiring them to re-register under restrictive conditions is adopted by parliament.
China Launches Christmas Crackdown On Christian Worship
Christians in several parts of China were behind bars on Christmas Day after a police crackdown on worship services and Bible study, a Christian advocacy group said Thursday, December 25.
Massive Arrests Of Christians In China
Over a dozen Christians will spend Christmas behind bars in China after police raided a Christian leaders gathering in Henan province, while in the capital Beijing two officials of the banned Chinese House Church Alliance were detained, an advocacy group and Chinese Christians confirmed Thursday, December 18.
China Sentences Christian To Labor Camp
Chinese authorities have sentenced Christian Mao Minzi to a forced labor camp for his involvement in organizing a worship service with other believers in a house church, an advocacy group confirmed late Thursday, December 11,
Russia Authorities Threaten Baptists, report
Baptists in the Russian town of Lipetsk south-east of Moscow say local authorities are using “a bureaucratic way” to restrict their activities, BosNewsLife monitored Wednesday, December 3.
Vietnam: Authorities Pressure New Christians to Recant
In violation of Vietnam’s new religion policy, authorities in Lao Cai Province in Vietnam’s far north are pressuring new Christians among the Hmong minority to recant their faith and to re-establish ancestral altars, according to area church leaders.
House Church Leader Zhu Baoguo Sentenced to ‘Re-education Through Labor’
ChinaAid learned a house church leader in Henan province, Pastor Zhu Baoguo, was sentenced to one year of “re-education through labor,” accused of being an “evil cult” leader.
Pastor Still Missing In Colombia; Christians Fear For His Life
Christians in Colombia were still searching for a Christian leader Wednesday, November 12, more than six weeks after he disappeared amid reports that several fellow pastors were killed by leftist rebels.
Pakistan Authorities Threaten To Bulldoze Dozens Of Christian Homes In Lahore
Dozens of Christian families in Pakistan’s second largest city refused to vacate their homes Tuesday, November 11, despite the expiration of an order from authorities to leave immediately, Christian rights investigators said.