360° view of forgotten war in Sudan’s Nuba Mountains

360° view of forgotten war in Sudan’s Nuba Mountains
News agency IRIN has produced a video that offers a 360° view of the situation of the people of the Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan, a state in southern Sudan. (To experience a 360° view, play video, then “move” view by hovering your mouse.) The Nuba people, living on the border with . . . Read More

‘I’d prefer if my leader is a Muslim’

Tens of thousands of Muslims have taken to the streets of Jakarta in recent days in an attempt to persuade Indonesians not to re-elect the capital city’s Christian governor, who stands accused of blasphemy. Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (better known as “Ahok”) is accused of “misusing” a Qur’anic verse (which, some . . . Read More

Indonesian church closed for years told: you can reopen if mosque allowed on your land

Indonesian church closed for years told: you can reopen if mosque allowed on your land
UPDATE (10 Feb, 2017): An Indonesian church closed for years by order of the local mayor has been told it can reopen if a mosque is also allowed on its premises. The GKI Yasmin Church in Bogor, 60km south of Jakarta, had resorted to holding open-air services outside the Presidential . . . Read More

DRC – more reports allege ‘caliphate’ in N. Kivu

The International Business Times UK writes about the apparent Islamic agenda of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. World Watch Monitor recently highlighted a UN report stating the same concern. Three decades since its start in Uganda in the 1990s, “the mysterious rebel . . . Read More

Indonesia Christians seek action against Islamists

Indonesia’s Christian leaders have urged the country’s president, Joko Widodo, to take action against a radical Islamist group. This comes after a petition called for the disbandment of the group, which is accused of being responsible for a series of violent attacks against Christians. The Christian leaders said the Islamic . . . Read More

Christians in Nigeria’s Jigawa State cry out as authorities begin church demolition

Christians in Nigeria’s Jigawa State cry out as authorities begin church demolition
Anxiety is high among Christian communities in Nigeria’s northern state of Jigawa after authorities began demolishing church buildings in Dutse, the state capital. On 11 January, bulldozers, escorted by security forces, reduced to rubble the Redeem Christian Church of God and the Lord Chosen Church. They arrived at the Redeem . . . Read More

Is Sudan really ready for sanctions to be lifted?

One of Barack Obama’s last acts in office was to scale back a 20-year-old trade embargo on Sudan. The move has been criticised by human rights groups, which have called it “premature” and “despicable”, but has the country and its President, wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court, . . . Read More

UN report highlights Islamists’ role in DRC violence

UN report highlights Islamists’ role in DRC violence
Over the Christmas weekend, more than 40 people were killed in the city of Beni and neighbouring communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Now a new report by the UN Panel of Experts on the DRC sheds new light on the presence of Islamist militants, which has caused . . . Read More

Church body calls for equal education in N Nigeria

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the north-eastern state of Yobe has appealed to the state government to introduce Christian religious studies in public schools. Despite the constitutional provision for freedom of worship, the teaching of Christian religious knowledge is prohibited by local authorities in Yobe and other northern . . . Read More

Sudanese pastors pressured to ‘inform’ or stand trial

Sudanese pastors pressured to ‘inform’ or stand trial
Forty-eight-year-old father of three Rev. Yamane Abraha received an ultimatum in Khartoum following a trip to Ethiopia in the autumn of 2015. “[Sudanese government] security threatened me, saying I would have to appear in court either as a witness, or an accused,” the Evangelical Baptist Church of Khartoum pastor told . . . Read More