NIGERIA: Eight missionaries released but more Christians abducted
ERITREA: 35 Christians arrested in prayer meeting raids
Two groups of Eritreans, totalling 35 Christians, have been arrested for holding prayer meetings.
IRAN: Naser Navard Gol-Tapeh writes poem for Persian New Year
Christian convert Naser Navard Gol-Tapeh, who is serving a ten-year prison sentence on national security charges, has written a poem on the occasion of Nowruz, the Persian New Year
NIGERIA: Eight missionaries kidnapped
Eight missionaries from the Redeemed Christian Church of God were abducted on 26 March when gunmen intercepted their minibus en route to an evangelistic mission in southern Kaduna state
INDONESIA: Twenty injured in Palm Sunday cathedral bombing
Twenty people were injured when two suicide bombers from an Islamist militant group attacked Makassar Cathedral on Palm Sunday
CHINA: Christians detained for attending Bible study
Christians from Guiyang Renai Reformed Church in Guizhou province have been detained for attending a Bible study
PAKISTAN: Nabeel Masih released on bail
Nabeel Masih has been released on bail and taken to a place of safety while his lawyers work to get him acquitted
IRAN: Iranian Christian couple told to expect summons to prison
Christian convert Homayoun Zhaveh, who has advanced Parkinson’s disease, and his wife Sara Ahmadi have been told to expect a summons to begin serving their prison sentences for belonging to a house church.
PAKISTAN: Another Christian girl kidnapped, forcibly converted and married
Thirteen-year-old Christian Shakaina Masih was kidnapped on 19 February in Lahore, forcibly converted to Islam and married to a Muslim man.
IRAN: UN rules Iran guilty of arbitrary detention of Youcef Nafarkhani
The UN’s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has ruled that the Iranian government is guilty of arbitrarily detaining Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani and has called for his immediate release
NIGERIA: Pastor Bulus released from captivity
Pastor Bulus Yikura was released from captivity on the evening of Wednesday 3 March, following threats to kill him unless a ransom was paid
ERITREA: 21 Christian women released from notorious island prison
On 26 February, 21 Christian women were released from Nakura prison in the Dahlak archipelago in the Red Sea.
NIGERIA: ISWAP militants threaten to kill abducted pastor
ISWAP militants have threatened to kill Pastor Bulus Yikura if a ransom is not paid by Wednesday 3 March
PAKISTAN: Farah Shaheen returns to family
A court has ordered that Farah Shaheen be released from a government-run refuge and returned to her family, eight months after she was abducted and forcibly married to a Muslim
PAKISTAN: Two Christians charged with blasphemy
Police in Lahore charged two Christians with blasphemy after a Muslim objected to them studying the Bible in a park.
IRAN: Ebrahim Firouzi ends hunger strike after promise of release
Christian convert Ebrahim Firouzi has ended his hunger strike after receiving assurances that he will soon be released and the case against him dismissed.
ERITREA: 83 more Christian prisoners released
In the past two weeks at least 83 Christian prisoners have been released, including Mussie Eyob and Aklilu Desbele, and Church in Chains has learned that Twen Theodros was released in late 2020
IRAN: Christian convert Ebrahim Firouzi arrested again
Ebrahim was arrested after releasing a series of six videos detailing harassment by Iranian intelligence services (MOIS).
PAKISTAN: Christian nurse attacked and charged with blasphemy
Tabeeta Nazir Gill has gone into hiding after false allegations of blasphemy were made against her
IRAN: Christians’ sentences upheld on appeal
Bushehr Court of Appeal has upheld the one-year prison sentences of Christian converts Habib Heydari and Sam and Sasan Khosravi.