Facebook a ‘megaphone for hate’ against Indian minorities
Mumbai, India Thomson Reuters Foundation Facebook is failing to rein in a “tsunami” of hate posts inflaming ethnic tensions in India’s Assam state, campaign group Avaaz said on Wednesday, with content about “criminals”, “rapists”, “terrorists” and “dogs” shared almost 100,000 times. Avaaz said the dehumanising language – often targeting India’s Bengali Muslims – was similar […]
“It’s time to be real: what happens in Iraq is ethnic cleansing” – UK analyst
World Watch Monitor What Iraq’s Christians want from the West is to say the plain truth: that there is ethnic cleansing of Christians in the region and it is ongoing, Dr Tim Stanley told a meeting at the UK’s parliament last week. The historian and columnist, working for UK daily newspaper The Telegraph, just returned from […]
Iranian church closed, cross torn down
World Watch Monitor An Assyrian church in northwestern Iran has been closed down and the cross removed from its tower, reports advocacy organisation Article 18. A “large number” of agents from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and EIKO, an organisation presided over by the Supreme Leader, reportedly stormed the 100-year-old-church on 9th May, changed all the locks, […]
India’s Supreme Court orders Kandhamal Christian freed on bail after 10 years in prison
Gornath Chalanseth, one of seven Christians jailed for life for the murder of a Hindu swami in the Kandhamal district of Odisha state in eastern India, has been freed on bail by India’s Supreme Court, World Watch Monitor reports. Nearly 100 Christians were killed and 300 churches and 6,000 Christian homes damaged in the Kandhamal district after […]
Two Pakistani Christian brothers sentenced to death for blasphemy
World Watch Monitor A Pakistani court last week sentenced two Christian brothers to death for blasphemy. Since their arrest in 2014, Qaisar and Amoon Ayub had been held in District Jail Jhelum, in Punjab province, 200 kilometres north of Lahore, for allegedly posting “disrespectful material” on their website, according to AsiaNews. For security reasons the two […]
Pakistan joins US list of worst religious freedom violators
World Watch Monitor Pakistan is among the 10 countries that appear on the US State Department’s latest list of Countries of Particular Concern for religious-freedom violations, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced in a press statement on Tuesday. China, Eritrea, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Pakistan, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan are accused of “having engaged in or tolerated systematic, ongoing, [and] egregious violations of religious freedom”. […]
Indonesian Christian governor Ahok set for early release from prison
World Watch Monitor Jakarta’s former governor, known as “Ahok”, who was sentenced last year to two years in jail for blasphemy against Islam, is to be released from prison next month, four months ahead of schedule. The ethnic Chinese Christian, whose real name is Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, was due to be released in May but has been […]
In Algeria, Christian family charged with “inciting a Muslim to change his religion”
World Watch Monitor Four Algerian Christians appeared in court last week, charged with “inciting a Muslim to change his religion” and “performing religious worship in an unauthorised place”, reports Middle East Concern. If found guilty they face to two to five years in prison and a fine of up to one million dinars (approx. $US8,700). […]
Reopening of Christian school in Iraq hailed as a “victory over extremism”
World Watch Monitor The reopening of the oldest Christian school in Mosul – a northern Iraqi city once controlled by IS – has been hailed as a “victory over terrorism and extremism”. The Shimon Safa Elementary School was closed for four years, but has welcomed 400 students – aged between six and 12 – for […]
New religious education bill in Indonesia requires registration of Sunday schools
World Watch Monitor Christians in Indonesia are opposing a new religious education bill that will require them to obtain government approval for holding Sunday schools or confirmation classes, reports the Catholic news site UCAN. The draft bill prescribes that these classes can only be offered if there are at least 15 participants and the organiser has […]