NIGERIA: Boko Haram executes abducted pastor
Pastor Lawan Andimi was beheaded by Boko Haram terrorists on the afternoon of 20 January
IRAN: Christian activist arrested after being expelled from university
Christian rights activist Fatemeh Mohammadi was arrested on 12 January in Tehran and taken to an unknown location.
KENYA: Three Christian teachers killed in latest Al-Shabaab attack
Anne Gideon, who survived the attack, said she heard the leader of the militants order that everyone should be killed.
NIGERIA: Pastor abducted following series of Christmas attacks
On 2 January, Rev Lawan Andimi, Adamawa state chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, was abducted during a Boko Haram raid in northeast Nigeria.
EGYPT: Ninety more churches granted legal status
On 31 December, a Cabinet committee granted licences to a new batch of ninety churches and affiliated service buildings.
SUDAN: Christmas brings hope for Christians
On Christmas Day, senior government officials attended a service at Khartoum Bahri Evangelical Church.
CHINA: Pastor Wang Yi sentenced to nine years in prison
On 30 December, Pastor Wang Yi of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu was sentenced to nine years in prison.
CHINA: Pastor Wang Yi tried in secret
On 26 December, the long-awaited trial of Wang Yi, pastor of Early Rain Covenant Church, was held in secret in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province.
TAJIKISTAN: Bakhrom Kholmatov released three months early
Tajik pastor Bakhrom Kholmatov has been released from prison three months early.
PAKISTAN: Further delays to blasphemy cases
Pakistani Christians Zafar Bhatti and Sawan Masih have had their appeal hearings adjourned again.
CHINA: Year of harassment for Early Rain Covenant Church
Monday 9 December marked the first anniversary of the raid on Early Rain Covenant Church, following which Pastor Wang Yi and over 150 church members were detained.
BURKINA FASO: Islamist gunmen kill 14 Christians during church service
On Sunday 1 December, Islamist gunmen opened fire on a service in the Evangelical Church of Hantoukoura, killing 14 people and injuring several others.
CHINA: Early Rain Covenant Church elder Qin Defu sentenced to four years in prison
On 29 November, elder Qin Defu of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, Sichuan province was sentenced to four years in prison.
INDIA: Assaulted pastor and family face charges
Following the brutal house church attack in Jharkhand state on 12 November, it has emerged that Pastor Basant Kumar Paul and seven members of his family are facing police charges.
SYRIA: Christians’ fears increase following murder of priest and his father
Syrian Christians’ fears have increased following the murder of a priest and his father on 11 November, in an attack for which Islamic State claimed responsibility.
INDIA: Pastor’s wife in coma after house church attacked
A pastor and his wife and son were badly injured when Hindu extremists attacked a prayer meeting at their house church on 12 November.
ERITREA: “It’s getting better and worse”
Dr Berhane Asmelash (Release Eritrea) speaks about the current situation inside Eritrea.
IRAN: Ebrahim Firouzi goes into internal exile
Two weeks after being released from prison, Ebrahim Firouzi set out on the long journey to the remote town where he is to spend two years in internal exile.
CHINA: Ireland joins 22 other countries in call for Chinese government to respect religious freedom
At the United Nations in New York, Ireland and 22 other countries at the United Nations expressed concern about religious freedom in China.
NIGERIA: Engravers’ College students and staff released
The six students and two staff members kidnapped from a Christian-run school in Kaduna state on 3 October have been released.