Unlawfully detained for months, Sudan church leaders finally in court

Unlawfully detained for months, Sudan church leaders finally in court
After nearly eight months of legal limbo, a Sudanese court has finally seen three detained Christian leaders, while charges against them remain officially “unknown”. Hassan Abduraheem Taour and Kuwa Shamal, both Sudan Church of Christ (SCC) pastors, and Abdulmonem Abdumawla Issa Abdumawla, appeared at the Bahri Criminal Court for a . . . Read More

Al-Azhar: to leave Islam is ‘treason’

Al-Azhar: to leave Islam is ‘treason’
To convert away from Islam is “treason” that should carry the death penalty, according to Sunni Islam’s topmost religious authority. “The penalty for an open apostate, departing from the community, is well stipulated in Sharia,” Al-Azhar’s Grand Imam Ahmed el-Tayyib declared on Egypt television last week. “An apostate must be . . . Read More

Nigeria considers giving Islamic appeals courts authority to take criminal cases

Nigeria considers giving Islamic appeals courts authority to take criminal cases
A Sharia court in northern Nigeria.Courtesy of Open Doors   The situation Nigeria’s National Assembly is considering a change to the country’s constitution that would expand the scope of jurisdiction of the country’s Islamic Sharia courts of appeal. Currently, the constitution limits those appellate courts to matters concerning family law. . . . Read More

Malaysian court upholds right to convert from Islam

Malaysian court upholds right to convert from Islam
In a landmark ruling last week a Malaysian court upheld the rights of a Christian to convert from Islam. The judgment establishes a precedent in a country where religious conversions, particularly from Islam to Christianity, have been steeped in controversy. The verdict reaffirms the supremacy of the Federal Constitution, which . . . Read More

A convert’s story

A convert’s story
U.S. President Barack Obama visited Kenya and Ethiopia 24-28 July, partly to discuss regional security. In Kenya especially, Christians have been targeted by the violent al-Qaeda affiliate al-Shabaab. In the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa on 28 July, making an American president’s first speech to the African Union, Obama said . . . Read More