The USCIRF calls on the governments of Thailand and Malaysia to admit boats carrying Rohingya Muslim refugees stranded at sea.

WASHINGTON, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) calls on the governments of Thailand and Malaysia to admit boats carrying Rohingya Muslim refugees stranded at sea. “Thai and Malaysian authorities must recognize their obligations under international law to refugees fleeing ethnic and religious violence,” USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin stated. “USCIRF urges…

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom released the following statement urging immediate envorcing of the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act

WASHINGTON, DC – The USCIRF (U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom) released the following statement urging the Administration to immediately enforce the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, which was signed by President Donald Trump: “Along with Congress, the official communication and policy of this administration has been unambiguous in expressing both concern and outrage over…

The International Committee on Nigeria applauds a new executive order signed by President Trump advancing international religious freedom.

WASHINGTON — The International Committee on Nigeria (ICON), a nonprofit working to secure a future for all Nigerians, released a statement today, applauding a new executive order signed by President Trump advancing international religious freedom. The order directs the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to take action to…

National Commission for Minorities, inaugurated in Pakistan on 5 May, has been welcomed as “an important step” towards the protection of religious freedom

The long-awaited National Commission for Minorities, now inaugurated in Pakistan on 5 May, has been welcomed as “an important step” in the country’s “continuing journey towards the protection of religious freedom” by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). Commissioner Johnnie Moore added that the formation of the minorities commission is “undoubtedly a…

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom welcomed the Pakistani government’s recent establishment of the National Commission for Minorities.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomed the Pakistani government’s recent establishment of the National Commission for Minorities to oversee religious minorities’ rights.. In a June 2014 ruling, the Pakistani Supreme Court directed the government to form a commission “to monitor the practical realization of the rights and safeguards provided…

A house church Chinese pastor in Hunan, China, was arrested for “inciting subversion” after refusing to join the ruling Chinese Communist controlled church.

A house church pastor in China’s Hunan province has been arrested for “inciting subversion of state power” after he refused to join the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s Three-Self Patriotic Association. Radio Free Asia reports that pastor Zhao Huaiguo, the founder of Bethel Church, was arrested on April 2 in China’s Hunan province, after being criminally…

Life for Sudan Christians is beginning to change for the better. A bill is being considered that would repeal the law prescribing death penalty for apostasy

KHARTOUM – Life for Christians is beginning to change for the better in Sudan. Mission Box News published a story on March 20, 2020, reporting that Sudan’s Transitional Government had disbanded the “church councils” operating under the previous 30-year regime of dictator Omar al-Bashar. The so-called “church councils” were fronts for persecuting Christians and demolishing…

USCIRF expressed its concern over reports in Pakistan targeting Hazara Shi’a for the spread of COVID-19 amid the Coronavirus lockdown.

WASHINGTON, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today expressed its concern over reports of the provincial government of Balochistan, Pakistan targeting Hazara Shi’a for the spread of COVID-19 amid the Coronavirus lockdown. “We are troubled that government officials in Balochistan are scapegoating the already vulnerable and marginalized Hazara Shi’a community…

Wycliffe Associates is using technology to protect and empower Bible translators working in regions of intense persecution for Christians.

ORLANDO, FL — Wycliffe Associates, an international organization that empowers mother-tongue Bible translators and partners with local churches in the advancement of Bible translation, is using technology to protect and empower Bible translators working in regions of intense persecution for Christians. By using high-capacity, Print On Demand equipment, Bible translators can quickly print the Scriptures…

International activists are sounding the alarm over what they say is the pervasive and violent persecution of embattled Nigerian Christians

The International Committee on Nigeria (ICON) launched a campaign Wednesday titled the “Silent Slaughter” to raise awareness about the estimated more than 60,000 Nigerians who have died as a result of religious conflicts since 2001. Already this year, ICON reports more than 400 Nigerians were killed because of their Christian faith, with thousands more displaced….

ChinaAid released its 2019 Annual Report on Friday, covering January to December 2019, detailing persecution and key findings for the year.

MIDLAND, TX — ChinaAid released its 2019 Annual Report on Friday, detailing persecution and key findings for the year. The report covers the period from January-December 2019 and provides information on the targeting of Chinese Christians. Throughout the year, ChinaAid observed escalated instances of religious oppression, driven by the government’s campaign to develop “religion with…

Five Christian families recently lost their homes and fields in southern Mexico for not participating in traditional religious festivals.

CHIAPAS, Mexico – Five Christian families recently lost their homes and fields in southern Mexico for not participating in traditional religious festivals. Requests for government intervention were ignored, and nearby churches are providing the displaced believers with emergency supplies and lodging. Evangelical Christians from indigenous communities in southern mexico, are often persecuted simply because they…

Nigeria hosts the highest rate of religiously-motivated violence in the world, according to religious freedom watchdog group Open Doors USA

NIGERIA – The Nigerian government now agrees with what church leaders have been complaining for years: Christians are the target of jihadist terrorism. “In the wake of a renewed onslaught by our tireless military against Boko Haram and their ISWAP (Islamic State West Africa Province) allies in recent times, the insurgents have apparently changed their…

The violence targeting Christian churches in northern Nigeria has turned that country into “a ticking time bomb,” U.S. religious leaders warn.

ADAMAWA, Nigeria – More than 100 members of the Islamic State of West Africa, also known as Boko Haram, recently swarmed northern Adamawa, a state in northeast Nigeria, and set at least five churches ablaze while they opened fire and indiscriminately killed residents, according to Sunday reports. The violence targeting Christian churches in northern Nigeria…

Liberty Counsel has come alongside UPS employees in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, who have allegedly been harassed by a supervisor for praying together

MYRTLE BEACH, SC – Liberty Counsel is a Christian ministry that “proclaims, advocates, supports, advances, and defends” religious freedom, the sanctity of human life, and the biblical model of marriage and family. The Orlando-based ministry maintains offices in Virginia and Washington, DC. The ministry is best understood as it is self-described on the Liberty Counsel…

The NRB Resolution Urging the Supreme Court to Uphold Religious Liberty as a Primary and not Secondary Right was drafted.

NASHVILLE, TN – On the last Friday of February, the Resolutions Committee of the National Association of Religious Broadcasters (NRB) published six significant resolutions in conjunction with its annual convention in Nashville.The sixth and final resolution applies to the preservation of certain inalienable rights recognized by the United States Declaration of Independence and our Constitution.The…

Concerns are being raised internationally about the well-being of an Iranian Christian convert who was arrested during an anti-government protest in Tehran last week.

TEHRAN – Concerns are being raised internationally about the well-being of an Iranian Christian convert who was arrested during an anti-government protest in Tehran last week. The Human Rights Activists News Agency first reported on the arrest of 21-year-old Christian convert Fatemeh Mohammadi, who prefers to go by the name “Mary” since her spiritual conversion….

In the end, numbers & statistics will never suffice to capture the magnitude of the global persecution of Christians. “Too many to count, too many unknown,”

Recently we observed one of the International Day[s] of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (known by the acronym IDOP). Initiated over 20 years ago by the World Evangelical Alliance, 100,000 congregations around the world and millions of Christians participate on this day. “Let us unite in prayer for our persecuted brothers and sisters,” IDOP said…