Ethiopia: Ethnic Somali Christian police man forced to relocate after talking about his faith

A Christian police officer in Ethiopia's eastern Somali region was advised to return to Islam but refused, claiming a constitutional right to religious freedom. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)
An Ethiopian police officer was arrested, dismissed and forced to move to another part of the country after he told colleagues about his Christian faith The 25-year-old man, who grew up in Ethiopia’s eastern Somali region as a member of the nearly 100 percent Muslim Somali tribe, became a Christian . . . Read More

70 years since universal declaration, human rights ‘ignored and abused all over the world’

Ahok protests
Ahead of the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Monday, 10 December, rights group ADF International has called for “recommitment” to the founding principles, which it says are being “consistently ignored and abused … all over the world”. Chief among those rights, ADF notes, is the . . . Read More

Persecution of minority Christian women ‘hidden, complex, and interwoven with “everyday” discrimination’

Women's suffering because of their faith is often in daily life. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)
Five new reports – about Egypt, Ethiopia, Iraq, Colombia and the Central African Republic – unmask the multiple domestic, societal and state dynamics used in the persecution of Christian women and girls in each country. When viewed individually, the tactics used against women – from subtle discrimination surrounding access to . . . Read More

Young Ethiopian Christians ‘bribed’ to convert to Islam, says charity

Ethiopia Orthodox Church
Young Ethiopian Christians are bribed with jobs and education prospects if they convert to Islam, according to the UK-based charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). A Christian religious leader who wished to remain anonymous told ACN that Christians who are poor were especially targeted. “The [Muslim employers] are . . . Read More

Eritreans still suffering despite peace deal with Ethiopia, says priest

Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Cathedral in Asmara, Eritrea. (Photo: David Stanley)
An Eritrean priest has called on the international community not to close their eyes to the reality of what is happening in his country, reports the Catholic news site Agenzia Fides. While bilateral relations with countries in the region are improving, the harassment of religious groups at home continues, Fr. Mussie . . . Read More

Ethiopian PM sends condolences to Orthodox Church after 15 priests killed

Ethiopian PM sends condolences to Orthodox Church after 15 priests killed
Ethiopia’s prime minister visited the leader of the country’s Orthodox Church on Saturday to express his condolences after 15 priests were killed and ten Orthodox churches damaged in the eastern Somali region last week. Among the priests killed were Rev. Kidane Mariam Nibretu, Rev. Yared Hibu, Father Gebiremariam Asfaw, and . . . Read More

‘Middle East without Christians would not be the Middle East’ – Pope Francis

Pope Francis lights a candle inside the cripta of the St. Nicholas Basilica in Bari, southern Italy July 7, 2018. REUTERS/Tony Gentile
Pope Francis says religious fundamentalists in the Middle East, “under the guise of religion, have profaned God’s name, which is peace, and persecuted age-old neighbours”, Reuters reports. The pope was speaking during a summit of Christian leaders in Bari, Italy, on Saturday, 7 July. He spoke of the “terrible suffering” . . . Read More

Reconciliation with Ethiopia could improve human rights in Eritrea – UN rapporteur

Reconciliation with Ethiopia could improve human rights in Eritrea – UN rapporteur
As relations between Ethiopia and its neighbour Eritrea show signs of improvement, the UN’s rapporteur on human rights in Eritrea has called for the momentum to be used to improve human rights conditions in the country. “While peace is being negotiated, while rapprochement is happening, one would make sure that . . . Read More

Ethiopian Evangelical sent back to prison for ‘causing outrage to religious feeling’

Women sitting in front of the Holy Saviour Orthodox Church in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)
An Ethiopian court of cassation has rejected an appeal by an Evangelical Christian sentenced to seven months in prison for “causing outrage to religious peace and feeling”. Temesgen Mitiku Mezemir, 24, the leader of an Evangelical fellowship group, was taken back to prison in the southern city of Arba Minch, . . . Read More