Young people from the Mahalians praise group (pictured) are among a large number of Christians released from prison in recent weeks.
The Eritrean government released 177 Eritrean Christians from evangelical and Pentecostal churches on conditional bail in a series of releases during November and December 2025. Most are believed to be young people who had been in prison for between one and three years, while some are believed to have been held for up to five years.
Timeline of major batches of releases
18 November BBC Tigrinya reported that 16 Christian men and three Christian women were freed on bail from a prison in Keren.
3 December Ten Christian men and 16 Christian women were released.
11 December 36 members of the Full Gospel Church (16 men and twenty women) were released.
12 December 17 Christians were freed from Mai Serwa prison which is notorious for harsh conditions and the use of shipping containers as cells.
20 December 46 prisoners were released, including young people from the Mahalians praise group.
Other prisoners were released in smaller groups.
An estimated 90% of the releases were conditional, only made after each prisoner signed a document confessing that they had committed a crime by following a religion banned by the government and would not do so again, and taking full responsibility for any punishment that might be incurred should they do it again.
In May 2002 the Eritrean government banned all churches except the Eritrean Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Lutheran churches and has imprisoned thousands of Christians without trial or sentence in the years since.
Why have the releases taken place now?
While the Eritrean government has not commented on the releases, one experienced observer said that they could have been prompted by the fact that some of the prisons were full or that the Christian young people were needed to work in government offices or in the military.
Other sources have speculated that the series of releases may be part of Eritrea’s efforts to reset relations with the USA following the return of the Trump administration.
In November 2024 the Eritrean leader Isaias Afwerki congratulated Donald Trump on his election as president, describing it as a “historic comeback” and expressing his hope for “a new chapter of fruitful and constructive ties” between Eritrea and the United States. In May 2025 President Trump, in similar vein, congratulated Eritrea on its 34th year of independence, stating that the USA valued “the contributions the Government of the State of Eritrea can make to regional security”.
No change for long-term prisoners
None of the seven Christian leaders in Eritrea who have been imprisoned for more than twenty years – Haile Naizge, Kiflu Gebremeskel, Meron Gebreselasie, Futsum Gebrenegus, Tekleab Menghisteab, Gebremedhin Gebregiorsis and Kidane Weldou – has been released.
It is estimated that there are currently around 270 Christian prisoners in Eritrea.
(CSW, Release Eritrea, BBC Tigrinya, Open Doors)