Bangladesh minority rights group accuses interim government of failing to protect minorities

Dhaka, Bangladesh AP Bangladesh’s largest minority rights group accused the country’s interim government on Thursday of failing to protect religious and ethnic minorities from attacks and harassment, a claim the government has denied. The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council said the government headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus is also using state […]
Syrian Christians want their identity and freedoms protected in any new constitution, envoy says

Nicosia, Cyprus AP As Syria begins recovering from 50 years of autocratic rule by the Assad family, an international envoy says Christians and other religious groups expect their rights and freedoms to be preserved under a new constitutional settlement. Salina Shambos, a senior Cypriot diplomat and the newly appointed special envoy for religious freedom and […]
Essay: Why Syria’s reconstruction may depend on the fate of its minorities

Expert on religious minorities, RAMAZAN KILINÇ, says – in an article first published on The Conversation – that the treatment of such groups will be a “critical indicator” of whether Syria can build an inclusive society…
Report ranks countries where religion faces highest government and social persecution

United States RNS A report by Pew Research Center on international religious freedom named Egypt, Syria, Pakistan and Iraq as the countries where both government restrictions and social hostility most limit the ability of religious minorities to practice their faith. Governmental attacks and social hostility toward various religions usually “go hand in hand”, said the […]
Symbols of co-existence?: After Hagia Sophia, Turkey converts a second ancient Byzantine church into a mosque

DAVID I KLEIN, of Religion News Service, reports that Muslim worshippers at the mosque on Friday said they viewed Chora Church’s rededication as an Islamic site to be a national win for Turkey…
US rights report on India cites abuses in Manipur, harassment of media and minorities

Washington DC, US Reuters The US State Department’s annual human rights assessment found “significant” abuses in India’s north-eastern Manipur state last year and attacks on minorities, journalists and dissenting voices in the rest of the country. Manipur has seen fierce fighting between its tribal Kuki-Zo and majority Meitei populations after a court order a year […]
Essay: Repression of women points to worsening religious freedom trends abroad

NURY TURKEL, co-founder of the Uyghur Human Rights Project and chair of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, and Rabbi ABRAHAM COOPER, director of global social action for the Simon Wiesenthal Center, and vice chair of USCIRF, say that denying religious freedom and women’s rights go hand-in-hand…
Essay: At 75, Pakistan has moved far from the secular and democratic vision of its founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah

In an article first published on The Conversation, FARAH N JAN, a scholar of South Asia, looks at the vision of Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah and how it stacks up against today’s reality…
Essay: The US Senate needs to confirm Biden’s new international religious freedom ambassador now

In an article published by Religion News Service, KNOX THAMES, who served as the special adviser for religious minorities in the Obama and Trump administrations, writes about why the US Senate should confirm Rashad Hussain, President Joe Biden’s nominee for ambassador-at-large…
Essay: The Pope’s Iraq visit will make headlines. Can it make life better for religious minorities?

In an article first published on Religion News Service, KNOX THAMES, a former special adviser for religious minorities at the US Department of State, looks at the hopes of religious minorities around Pope Francis’ upcoming visit to Iraq…