MEET THE PERSECUTED
Real stories of real people in various parts of the world who are persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ.
Please take a moment to read their stories and then pray for them!
Nigeria: Nigerian Christian who lost husband in Fulani attack: "I return to encourage other women to do the same."
March 29, 2018 by World Watch Monitor
Shaforon village in northeast Nigeria's Adamawa state is all but deserted. Residents fled to the bigger cities of Numan and the state capital, Yola, when the village was attacked by Fulani herdsmen in December.
Hanatu Solomon, whose husband died during the attack, is one of the few to have returned. She says she hopes to rebuild her life. "Leadership is by example," she told World Watch Monitor during a visit to Shaforon, in the Numan local government area, on March 21. "I returned so that other women will be encouraged to do the same. We can't desert our ancestral homes simply because we have been attacked - that will give our enemies victory over us."
Pakistan: four Christians killed, girl wounded in Easter Monday attack
April 3, 2018 by Morning Star News
Lahore, Pakistan -- Four Christians, including a woman, were killed and a young girl wounded in a terrorist attack in Pakistan on Monday (April 2), sources said. Rickshaw driver Pervaiz Masih was transporting his brothers-in-law Imran Masih and Tariq Masih, along with their sister-in-law Firdous, in Quetta, capital of the restive province, when two unidentified terrorists opened fire on them, killing them instantly, according to the driver's cousin, George Anjum. The visitors had just boarded the vehicle when they were attacked.
Pervaiz Masih's 12-year-old daughter, Sidra, suffered bullet wounds and was receiving treatment at Quetta's Civil Hospital. Her life was said to be out of danger.
The rickshaw driver lived in Quetta, while his relatives were visiting from Sheikhupura District, Punjab Province, to celebrate Easter, Anjum told Morning Star News. "Imran had especially traveled to Balochistan to celebrate Easter with his sister in Quetta, " he said. "Their elder brother Emmanuel, whose wife Firdous is among those killed, makes a living as a rickshaw driver. He was inside the house when the attack took place.
Iraq: thousands of Iraqi Christians celebrate Palm Sunday in Qaraqosh
March 25, 2018 by Brian O. Open Doors
For the first time since ISIS drove all the Christians from Iraq's Nineveh Plain in 2014, the Christian town of Qaraqosh celebrates Palm Sunday after many of its families have returned. During this week leading up to Easter, our team on the ground visits Qaraqosh to meet with Christians there.
Today, the world can see and hear powerful truth---Christians have returned to the Nineveh Plain. Thousands of Iraqi Christians walked through the streets of the ancient town, waving palm and olive branches; praying, singing and remembering the triumphant entry of Jesus Christ. Their chorus: "King of kings and Lord of lords. Glory! Hallelujah!"
Don't Lose Hope
Amidst all this, we spoke with a 25-year-old teacher named Andraws. His message to Christians around the world was clear: "Please do not lose hope. Two and a half year we were displaced and we almost lost hope to ever return here. But today, we are here again, because of Jesus; because we had hope in Him," he said.
Iraq: missing from the Nineveh plains and Mosul
February 23, 2018
from Open Doors
As restoration of the Church in Iraq's Nineveh Plain continues, the casualties of war are still very real for many families. Our local partners report that more than 60 Christians from the Nineveh Plain are still missing since the liberation of the area at the end of 2016 and the summer of 2017.
The son of Adeeb Khedir Qreshat and Najeeba Poules Hanna stand at the site of his parents' abandoned home in Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city.
He is taken back by what he sees. Nothing is left of his parent's home. Everything is completely destroyed.
The last time he saw his parents was three years ago. While 100,000 Christians fled the city in one night when Islamic State militants captured and took control of the city in June 2014, his elderly parents stayed in their home. Mosul's entire population was given a 24-hour ultimatum to either convert to ISIS's radical brand of Islam or face beheading.
Middle East: the light cannot be stopped
In a hidden location in the Middle East, a group of female house church leaders has gathered in secret to grown and learn together. Lively conversation and warm smiles fill the room.
Outside this room, in a culture dominated by men, these women are forced to blend into the anonymous mass of covered heads. The must hide their faith and risk their lives. But the light of Christ can't be stopped, and in the safety of this women's conference hosted by Open Doors, these daring leaders can finally be themselves.
Tala,* a warm, young woman with big, bright eyes, is part of the group. She was the first to come to faith in her Muslim family and has led more family members to Christ, including two of her older sisters. The sisters' decisions to live for Christ come at a high price.
EGYPT: VIOLENCE ESCALATES DURING HOLIDAYS
January 02, 2018
News Service 2000 Co-Worker & World Watch Monitor
Violence escalated during the Christmas holidays in Egypt. The Mar Mina and Pope Kyrillos Church was attacked on December 29th. That same day, two Christian men were shot to death inside their appliance store.
On January 19th, 2018, we heard from one of our co-workers that two brothers, Ashraf and Adel were gunned down on January 1st near their car parts store by a radical Muslim man. The motive is unclear, but the brothers had been helping another Christian shopkeeper restock alcohol to hand out during the News Year's celebrations.
Global: the 4 major trends influencing global Christian persecution
January 10, 2018
Open Doors
ENDURING THE SLOW 'SLOW CREEP' OF THE ISLAMIST
In the reporting period for the 2018 World Watch List, four trends have played a significant role in the persecution of Christians worldwide. By no means are they the only trends affecting believers globally. However, our research and reports from our on-the-ground partners and field reps in more than 60 countries indicate that these trends are the major forces influencing the persecution of Christians around the world. We identify and highlight them to provide insight into the battle the global Church is facing today.
REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENT
In terms of media coverage, the Islamist Revolutionary Movement is one of the most widely recognized sources of persecution for Christians in the world today-and it continues to spread-aiming to bring many parts of the world under Sharia law.
Iran: Why Iranians are ultimately protesting against Islam
January 04. 2018
Raymond Ibrahim
What began on December 28 as local protests against high food prices in the northern city of Mashhad, Iran, has spiraled into mass protests consisting of some hundreds of thousands of Iranians in some two dozen cities, including if not especially Tehran, the seat of government. So far over 20 protesters have been killed and many hundreds arrested in what has been widely described as "the most serious internal crisis the country has faced this decade."
The protests have morphed from mundane topics concerning the economy to more existential topics concerning Islamic leadership. Reportedly hundreds of thousands of protesters have been heard shouting "We don't want an Islamic Republic," and calling blessings on Reza Shah, the staunch secularist and political reformer who did much to Westernize Iran, until his son and successor, Muhammad Reza Shah was deposed during the Islamic Revolution of 1979. According to Mideast media, women-such as Maryam Rajavi-are spearheading the current protests (and symbolically rejecting Islamic impositions by publicly removing their hijabs).
Israel: Trump scraps cherished
"Israel grievance" myth
December 27, 2017
Raymond Ibrahim/Front Page Magazine
President Trump's new National Security strategy is not only notable for what it brings back to the paradigm-words such as "jihadi" and "sharia"- but in what it gets rid of, namely, the long held, much entrenched notion that Israel is the root source of all the turmoil plaguing the Middle East. According to the new strategy document,
"For generations the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has been understood as the prime irritant preventing peace and prosperity in the region. Today, the threats from jihadist terrorist organizations and the threat from Iran are creating the realization that Israel is not the cause of the region's problems. States have increasingly found common interests with Israel in confronting common threats."
That this is true cannot be overstated. For decades, the official establishment position championed by politicians, academics, and journalists of all stripes seeking to apologize for all the anger, violence, and jihadi terror plaguing the region was the creation of Israel.
Middle East: A Time of Change for Rob & His family
Dr. Pat and Br. Dave met "Rob" and his family in February of 2017. His story was featured in our May 2017 prayer letter.
Rob, a former Muslim, became a Christian because of what he and his family experienced having lived with an American missionary for a time. This missionary prayed for Rob's paralyzed sister, and she was healed.
Rob's wife was pregnant at the time and was afraid that his conversion to Christianity would cause her to miscarry, but after seeing Rob's sister healed, his wife also believed in Jesus. Of course, that's when her family turned against them for "shaming the family" by leaving Islam.
Rob was attacked more than once by his brother-in-law. One beating was so severe, Rob almost died. Rob's wife was being pressured to divorce him, and they were told to become Muslim again or Rob would be killed. They had no choice except to flee to another country where they eventually met Dr. Pat and Brother Dave.
The rest of the story...
Egypt: 'Let them live to tell the story'..
Boys who saw dad die on the monastery road
December 21, 2017
by World Watch Monitor
Marco and Mina live in a small village in the Minya region of rural southern Egypt. Both look young for their age, 14 and 10 respectively. On May 25, 2017, they joined their father Ayad to go to the monastery of St. Samuel. Ayad worked there and was going to teach the teenagers his job. He never got the chance.
Right before them on the road to the monastery, a bus full of pilgrims was attacked by a group of armed men. All the Coptic men who would not confess Islam were shot. Then the gunmen heard Ayad's pick-up truck approach.
Mina recalls what happened that day, his empty eyes stare at the floor, his legs wobble impatiently. "My dad was driving, some of his colleagues rode with us. Then we heard shouting."
Egypt: Coptic girl, 16, rescued 92 days after Islamists kidnapped her
October 5, 2017
World Watch monitor
A 16-year-old Coptic Christian girl kidnapped on June 28 to be "converted to Islam, then married off or sold", was released and returned to her family on September 30 after police found her and arrested her kidnappers in a city just outside Cairo.
Marilyn was recovered from a city name 10th of Ramadan, but she is from a village several hundred kilometers south, in the governorate of Minya.
Her village priest, Father Boutros Khalaf, told World Watch Monitor: "Recently we found out that Marilyn was held in a place in 10th of Ramadan city... We went to the local police station and they really did their best to reach her and managed to arrest her kidnappers, Taha, and his brother, Gaber, and release Marilyn. She returned back to her family on Saturday, September 30, after 92 days".
U.S. tells Sudan to 'immediately suspend' church demolitions
November 20, 2017
World Watch Monitor
The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State has called on Sudan to "immediately suspend" its demolition of churches and to hold a round table discussion with Christian leaders to resolve disputes.
John J. Sullivan, speaking at the Al-Neelain Mosque in Omdurman on Friday, November 17, said, "treatment of members of religious minorities is often the ultimate indicator of a government's commitment" to religious freedom.
He added that the U.S. State Department's recent International Religious Freedom report "noted instances of the arrest, detention, and intimidation of religious leaders, and the denial of permits for the construction of new churches; restrictions on non-Muslim religious groups from entering the country; and the censorship of religious material".
China: Tightens control on Christians
September 15, 2017
Morning Star New
Recent bans on unregistered church worship and on teaching Christianity to children, "as if intending to eliminate all house churches at once," have startled Christians, a China Aid source reported.
In Guangzhou, Guangdong Province in southern China, a source told China Aid that in the past week police visited members of unregistered church members at their homes to warn them not to attend worship services. Officers also summoned a large number of them for questioning.
"The police called me again today and ordered me to stay away from church gatherings, which irritated me," reported one Christian, who wished to remain unnamed. "I don't know what to do with these people."
Egypt: Copts Face arrest after Facebook post
September 25, 2017
World Watch Monitor
Two Coptic Christians in a village in Minya, Upper Egypt are facing charges of inciting sectarian strife and insulting Islamic leaders, after comments from one of the men on social media, shared by the other caused some Muslims in their village to riot.
Bassem Abdel-Malak Fahim, 25, from the village of Ezbat El-Sheikh Nageim, first posted the comments on Facebook in the wake of the Minya bus attack in May, when 28 Copts were killed. The day after the attack, Fahim shared photographs of some well-known Islamic leaders, and accused them of inciting people to attack Christians. He also criticized the Egyptian government and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi for targeting Islamic extremists in Libya but failing to control those within Egypt's borders.
Egypt: Soldier beaten to death for his Christian faith, relatives say
July 27, 2017
Morning Star News
In Cairo, Egyptian military officers beat a new soldier to death on July 19 upon learning that he was a Christian, relatives said.
Joseph Reda Helmy of Kafr Darwish village, Beni Suef Governorate, had just completed training at Mubarak military training center and was transferred to Al-Salaam Special Forces police unit, where three officers killed him, relatives told Middle Eastern media. The Egyptian army told relatives Helmy died of an epileptic seizure.
His father, Reda Helmy, told Al Karma TV by phone that his large, strong son had arrived at the camp at 2 p.m. and was dead by 8 p.m.
Why are Attacks on Egypt's Coptic Christians getting worse?
July 14, 1017
World Watch Monitor
Attacks on Christians in Egypt have intensified in brutality because of an influx of arms and foreign jihadis, lax border security and increased local hostility to non-Muslims, according to a leading UK academic.
Dr. Mariz Tadros of Sussex University's Institute of Development Studies said that the suicide attack on a Cairo church last December showed that jihadis are prepared to engage in suicide bombings "to maximize horror". Attacks by Salafis and Muslim Brotherhood members, which have resulted in less damage, have not involved the death of the perpetrator, she added.
Many Egyptian Muslims had shown themselves willing to put their lives in danger to help their Coptic neighbors, she stressed.
Islamic state in Asia: what you need to know
June 29, 2017
World Watch Monitor
When Islamic State (ISIS) launched its so-called caliphate in 2014 it had seized territory in Iraq and Syria. However over the last 18 months, militants claiming allegiance to the group have carried out attacks in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines, while the group also has sympathizers in India and Pakistan.
ISIS has "recognized" a number of existing Islamist terrorist groups in the Philippines, though it has stopped short of announcing a wilayet -- or province --there, as it has within Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nigeria and the Northern Caucasus. Last year the group issued a 20 - minute video encouraging viewers who could not travel to the Middle East to "go to the Philippines".
In choosing Christianity, Mexican tribal's risk alienation, eviction
April 5, 2017
by World Watch Monitor
The belief dates back to when the Wixarika tribe first arrived in the area, in the western state of Jalisco, and encountered a deer which seemed to appear in front of them whichever way they turned. The tribe interpreted this as a sign of its promise of protection.
Today, in a community still dominated by members of the same tribe, the deer retains its significance as one of three local "gods". The others are the maize upon which the community subsists and a hallucinogenic drug believed to invite an encounter with the spiritual realm.
For many of the tribe, to be Wixarika is to believe in the power of the three and to partake in the ritual and sacrifices offered to the gods-- rituals involving blood, water and the use of the drug.
Yet not all Wixarika's believe in these practices. There are some, dotted around the communities of the surrounding mountains, who have become Christians and now don't want to take part in the rituals.
Mexico: Christians easy targets in Mexico's lawless borderlands
April 6, 2017
by World Watch Monitor
The Governor of Mexico's northern state of Chihuahua, Javier Corral, admitted that his government does not have the means to tackle organized crime, and that he's asked for federal resources to fight the drug cartels.
This came four days after the murder of a local journalist, who'd reported extensively on the links between organized crime and politicians.
Chihuahua's largest city, Juarez, on the border with the US state of Texas, used to be known as the murder capital of the world. From 2007-2014, thousands of people were killed every year in Juarez in violence related to organized crime. In 2011, the death toll across Mexico was greater even than in Syria and Juarez was at the center of it.
A period of relative calm has followed -- though dozens are still killed every month --but a local church leader fears another crescendo of violence is around the corner.
Egypt: Hannan sprayed with acid
by Dr. Pat
Hannan, an Egyptian Christian woman, had just finished shopping at the local open air market. As she was walking home a small three-wheeled vehicle call a Tuk Tuk drove up next to her and one of the young Muslim men in the vehicle sprayed her chest with batter acid. It burned through her shirt and skin. They targeted her because they knew she was a Christian since she was not wearing a scarf to cover her head.
Hannan had heard of such attacks upon Christians, but she did not believe it would ever happen to her. Unfortunately, Hannan learned firsthand about radical Muslims' hatred of Christians.
As the acid penetrated into her skin, she ran into a shop and doused herself with water used to make sugar cane juice. She was screaming in pain. The red area of the shirt in the picture is a result of the acid.
Since she knew that the police would not be able to find the perpetrators, she went home to her parents. She says that it was a horrific experience, but she says she is not afraid to walk the streets again. She will be more vigilant in the future.
Please pray for her total recovery and for her safety from further attacks.
Meet the Persecuted
Sometimes it is difficult to pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters when we don't know specific needs. This page is intended to help you know who you are praying for and what specifically you can be praying for. We share real stories of real people. Some are our personal stories of people we know, others are from resources who have the same goal in mind... To remember, encourage and pray for the Body of Christ.
Egypt: persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ
by Dr. Pat
December of 2016, a bomb was smuggled into st. Mark's Cathedral in Cairo, Egypt, and hidden beneath the pews where most of the women and children sit.
The carnage that day was horrific. Mothers, fathers, sons and daughters were killed. One little boy lost both his mother and father. Our co-worker was on the scene comforting and helping family members in any way he could.
I can only speculate why attacks occur more frequently during the Christmas season. Perhaps it is because more Christians are gathered together in group settings, giving the deranged attackers more victims to claim.
Egypt: Priest killed in a knife attack
-- Dr. Pat
On October 13, 2017 Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church said a priest had been killed in a knife attack in a poor district of Cairo, the latest deadly assault on members of the country's Christian minority. The priest was identified in the media as Father Samaan Shehata. Security officials say the attacker struck the priest's head with a cleaver and fled the scene, but was later arrested.
Bishop Angaelos, Britain's Coptic Orthodox bishop, said Fr. Shehata had been visiting his family in Cairo and collecting aid for the needy in his parish. He had left his mobile phone at a church and was walking back to reclaim it.
Egypt: A Family trip
-- Dr. Pat & World Watch Monitor
News Service 2000 sponsors yearly conferences in Egypt for persecuted Christians, in the past, the participants were taken to the meetings on large bused. In January of 2017, we were cautioned by the conference leader that bused were being attacked when the Islamic militants ascertained that the buses were transporting Christians.
Then in May, buses were being attacked as Christians were traveling to a monastery. The gunmen boarded the buses and opened fire. These buses were not the buses NS2000 hires for our conferences, but the tragedy reinforced our need to use alternated methods of transportation for the next conference. Below are several testimonies from survivors of the a May 2017 attack.
Stained with blood...
For Sohair Saad the tragedy is almost unbearable. After the death of her son, Reda, and daughter-in-law, Heba, Sohair is now taking care of their five orphaned children.
Reda, 35, and Heba 30, had taken their two youngest children, Ilaria, 4, and Hedra, 1, to visit the monastery with some of their relatives from Nazlet Hanna, while the other three children stayed ....
Iraq: Christina's Return
-- Dr. Pat & World Watch Monitor
Three years ago, little three year old Christina was snatched from her mother's arms by ISIS. Dr. Pat met with some of her family's neighbors who had escaped from ISIS that same day. They feared that Christina's mother would never see her daughter again.
Great news! Christina was rescued as ISIS began losing ground in Iraq. I know many of you were touched by her story and have been praying fervently for her safety and return. Here is an update from World Watch Monitor.
After almost three years in captivity, an Iraqi Christian girl abducted by the Islamic State or ISIS in August 2014 has finally been reunited with her parents.
Christina Abada, who was about to celebrate her sixth birthday, was welcomed home at around 10 am in the morning, local time. Locals said she was released by the Iraqi Special Forces.
Iraq: Assyrian Christians: persecution and resurgence
April 4, 2018 by Arar Sarvarian World Watch Monitor
Samir Gedhya never wanted to leave his home in Qaraqosh for the unknown, even when the Islamic State group was almost at his doorstep, sweeping through the towns of Iraq. As the menace to Qaraqosh loomed, his eldest son Faraj, then 16, decided to flee to France, entering by a hazardous and illegal boat journey with the aim of later seeking to move his family there. Samir and his wife, Shaymaa, decided they would take the longer, safer and legal route to France together with their two younger sons.
Just before ISIS penetrated Qaraqosh in August 2014, the Assyrian Christian family fled to Erbil Governorate, finding themselves on the streets of the city of Ankawa without a roof over their heads. After a week, they arrived at Mart Shmoni refugee camp, which hosted 15,000 people, then moved onto Ankawa shopping mall, which had opened its doors to 4,000 refugees, Years later, the memory of scabies, a contagious skin infection that had spread throughout the mall, makes Samir's body crawl, even though he did not contract it.
In February 2016, upon being granted official permission, the family traveled to France and stayed there almost two years. Then, after Qaraqosh was liberated from ISIS and it was deemed to be safe to return, they packed their bags and made their way home. Faraj chose to remain in France.
Palestinian father who lost daughter: 'Don't be Pro-Palestinian or Pro-Israel, be Pro-justice
April 5, 2018
World Watch Monitor
A Palestinian Christian father whose 12-year-old daughter was killed by Israeli soldiers has spoken about the ongoing conflict and his decision to forgive the soldiers who shot her, just over 15 years ago.
Violence erupted once again at the weekend along the Israeli border with Gaza, leaving at least 16 Palestinians dead and hundreds injured.