Tag: Children

Lost, then found, then lost

May 27, 2016 Nigeria Chibok girls, Children, Kidnapping, Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria, Women

On 19 May, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari held a ceremony at the presidential palace to meet Amina Ali Nkeki, 19, the first of the 219 girls kidnapped from their Chibok school in April 2014 . The girl was there with her new baby, and her elderly mother. The three haven’t . . . Read More

Aleppo Christian areas shelled, scores casualties

April 28, 2016 Syria Aleppo, Armenians, Children, Civil War, Kurds, Syria

Despite a fragile truce helped by both US and Russian efforts, at least 19 people have been killed and scores injured this week in continued shelling in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. Coinciding with the 101st anniversary of the Turkish genocide of Armenians and other Christians, areas of notable . . . Read More

‘Losing my religion’ – why it’s so hard in the Middle East

April 26, 2016 Burial, Children, Education, Marriage, Middle East, Mohammed Hegazy

Why is the Middle East the way it is? There are many ways to approach answering this question. The book ‘Identity Crisis’ by Jonathan Andrews, a former researcher for Middle East Concern, a group of Christian charities which all work across the region, provides “a unique and timely perspective on . . . Read More

Latest Assyrian hostages’ release by ISIS

January 4, 2016 Syria Assyrians, Children, Hasakah, Islamic State, Kidnapping, Syria, Women

ISIS has released 25 of the Assyrian hostages it captured during the militant group’s February 2015 in Hassaka Province, northern Syria. The hostages were released in good health on Christmas day. Two of the hostages were men and the rest women and children. All the children belonged to six of . . . Read More

Iraqi Patriarch challenges ‘identity law’

November 11, 2015 Iraq Baghdad, Children, Converts, Erbil, Iraq, Louis Raphael I Sako, Minorities, Yazidis

The Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Iraq renewed his opposition this week to an article in the nation’s new national laws requiring minority-faith children to become Muslims if one parent converts to Islam. Describing the new law as both unconstitutional and “unacceptable,” Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako has called on President . . . Read More

UN report focuses on children’s rights

November 5, 2015 Iraq Children, Converts, Divorce, Minorities, Religious freedom, UN

This little girl and her family were forced out of their home in Iraq by the Islamic State.Courtesy Open Doors International States must pay more attention to violations of the rights of children and their parents, particularly minorities and converts, according to the latest report from the United Nations’ . . . Read More

Nigeria: 338 rescued from Boko Haram

October 28, 2015 Nigeria Boko Haram, Chibok girls, Children, Kidnapping, Nigeria, Women

Nigeria’s army says that it has rescued 338 people – predominantly women and children – from Boko Haram. “Troops of 28 Task Force Brigade Nigerian Army deployed at Bitta and Pridang carried out a successful raid on suspected Boko Haram terrorists’ camps at Bulajilin and Manawashe villages along Bita and . . . Read More

Iraqi Christian MPs challenge their constitution

October 22, 2015 Iraq Children, Constitution, Converts, Iraq, Islamic extremism, Marriage, Minorities, Yazidis

Four Christian members of the Iraqi parliament have called for a change in the law to preserve the religion of dependent children whose fathers convert to Islam, reports Middle East Christian News. As the civil law now stands, children under the age of 18 become Muslim when their father converts. . . . Read More

IS builds army of children

October 8, 2015 Boko Haram, Children, Christina Abada, Iraq, Islamic State, Minorities, Nigeria, Qaraqosh, Syria

The Islamic State is moulding Syrian and Iraqi children into a new generation of militants, reports the BBC. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that more than 50 children under the age of 16 had died fighting for IS so far in 2015, while 19 were used as suicide . . . Read More

Rape as weapon of war prolongs victims’ agony

September 14, 2015 Nigeria Boko Haram, Chibok girls, Children, Jizya, Nigeria, Rape, Women

For hundreds of women and girls kidnapped by Boko Haram militants, their ordeal did not end when they escaped, or when Nigerian soldiers rescued them and reunited them with their families. Instead of being admired for their bravery, many have become outcasts in their communities, stigmatised due to their perceived . . . Read More

Catching Our Eye