Bulletin of Christian Persecution July 16, 2009

Facts without comments-- We
Collect the Dots; You Connect Them

Please spread this bulletin and send us
events that you find.

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North America

June 8, 2009

San Diego, CA, USA

A Muslim man shot a Christian five times after an argument over religion.

June 12, 2009

Adams, NY, USA

A Muslim forced a Harley-Davidson dealer to take down a sign saying that America
is a Christian nation.

June 13, 2009

USA

US companies quietly lobby on an Armenian genocide bill as they do business
with Turkey.

June 19, 2009

USA

The Refugee Admissions Program is failing at-risk Iraqi Christian refugees.

June 21, 2009

Dearborn, MI, USA

An Arab Christian group was stopped by security from asking questions of people
manning an "Islam: Got Questions?" booth at Arabfest. The Christians were
then assaulted by security. (Video.)

The group was also prohibited from handing out leaflets and
filed a lawsuit against the city, before being denied a restraining order preventing
them from being restricted.

June 25, 2009

Maine, USA

The state of Maine fined the Christian Action Network and tried to coerce them
into signing away all rights to appeal and to fundraising over their "inflammatory
anti-Muslim message" after they sent out a mailer advertising Homegrown Jihad.

June 27, 2009

USA

NGOs and religious leaders call on the US to halt the deportation of a Copt
to Egypt, where he will likely be tortured or worse.

June 28, 2009

USA

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is concerned
at reports of attacks targeting Coptic Orthodox Christians in the small Egyptian
village of Ezbet Boshra-East.

July 3, 2009

PA, USA

A Pennsylvania pastor was asked to pray before the state's House of Representatives,
but his prayer was rejected because it contained an offensive word: "Jesus."

July 3, 2009

USA

The Pentagon denied the flyover of the God and Country Rally for the first
time in 42 years because of its "Christian nature."

July 7, 2009

Newton Square, PA, USA

A Christian mother was forbidden from reading King David's Psalms at her son's
kindergarten. The case may go before the Supreme Court.

July 7, 2009

USA

The US is to take on 1,350 Iraqi Palestinians who were former guests of
Saddam Hussein. Christians, both Iraqi and Palestinian, are stuck being
massacred in the Middle East.

South America

July 5, 2009

Brazil

FIFA, the worldwide soccer organization, sent an official admonishment to the
Brazilian Federation because its players prayed and thanked God in the middle
of the field after their win. The Egyptian team performed an Islamic prayer
in the middle of the field after their win against Italy but were not similarly
admonished.

Africa

June 4, 2009

Eritrea

Four Christians died in an underground dungeon, where they were kept for almost
six years. Four others went blind after exposure to "piercing sunlight"
following months in darkness.

June 8, 2009

Giza, Egypt

Two policemen who were convicted of murder for pushing a Coptic man out
of a window were sentenced to only five years.

June 8, 2009

Egypt

A report by the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada’s
Religious Liberty Commission details the oppression of and discrimination against
Christians in Egypt, both modern and historical.

June 9, 2009

Cairo, Egypt

A mob of 150, armed with clubs and swords, assaulted the family of a Coptic
girl who was abducted and then recovered the same day. The police then
arrested 11 Copts, including the assaulted family.

June 10, 2009

Banjul, Gambia

A British missionary jailed on trumped-up sedition charges has been delayed
because prosecutors failed to attend his hearing. His wife is also jailed
and Christian Solidarity Worldwide is worried for their health.

June 14, 2009

Deir Abu Hennis, Egypt

The cultural genocide of Egypt's Copts continues as the Egyptian government
changes the name of a village whose inhabitants are 100% Coptic.

June 16, 2009

Cairo, Egypt

A judge denied a second Christian convert identity documents stating his religion,
effectively denying him the right to convert.

June 17, 2009

Toma, Egypt

Two Christians have been detained for nearly a month after riots broke out following
the abduction and retrieval of a Coptic girl. Reuters’ version, issued by the Egyptian government,
was a little different.

June 17, 2009

Nigeria

A pregnant Christian woman lost most of her family, got shot, and lost her unborn
baby in attacks by Muslim militants. (Video.)

June 18, 2009

Sudan

232 Sudanese slaves who were abducted during the North-South Civil War (1983-2005)
were finally liberated. They had been subjected to "a clear
pattern of physical and psychological abuse."

June 20, 2009

Cairo, Egypt

Twin Coptic boys who have been caught in a custody dispute for five years were
finally given to their Coptic mother but were forced to remain Muslims despite
declarations that they are Christians.

June 22, 2009

Egypt

A Muslim mob attacked a church and assaulted Copts with clubs, instigated by
State Security. A village priest was charged with sedition.

June 22, 2009

Ezbat Bsharreh, Egypt

18 were wounded in Muslim-Christian clashes when Muslims threw rocks at Copts
to prevent them from going into the home of a priest to join the Mass in progress.

June 22, 2009

Zanzibar

Government officials evicted a congregation from the building they were
renting, ostensibly for renovations. No renovations were performed
but the building now houses a business.

June 24, 2009

Ezbet Boshra, Egypt

Copts were placed under curfew and confined them to their homes, in fear
of an impending massacre following mob attacks two days earlier. Security
forces destroyed crops for three consecutive days, but charges were dropped
against the reverend who was charged on 6/22/2009. Update 6/29: Authorities released all suspects who had
been arrested.

June 26, 2009

Noaukchott, Mauritania

An American aid worker was killed by Al-Qaeda militants for "spreading
Christianity." Update 7/01: Christians in the town have fled to Europe
in fear, escorted by police.

June 26, 2009

Uganda

A woman’s parents threw her out when she converted to Christianity. She
married a Christian man and fled with him after her family threatened to kidnap
her, but they were thrown out of their new home. Muslims have threatened
to harm her family.

June 30, 2009

Zanzibar

Muslims burned down two church buildings following services "as a
fierce warning," before threatening to burn down the houses of the congregants.

June 30, 2009

Mogadishu, Somalia

"I'm telling the people that it's time we attacked Ethiopia, who are our Christian
neighbours."

July 1, 2009

Meet El-Korashy, Egypt

After a young man died in a fight with a Coptic shopkeeper mobs attacked, torched,
and looted Christian homes and businesses.

July 1, 2009

Egypt

"[I]mpunity fuels persecution - the terrible consequence of forced 'reconciliation'
in the absence of truth or justice." Copts are
denied the right to practice their faith and are subject
to "Muslim mob justice."

July 1, 2009

Dessie, Ethiopia

Police shot two people who were building a church, killing them both. Another "fell off a cliff."

July 1, 2009

Somalia

Militants beheaded two young boys because their Christian father refused to
give up information about a church leader. They are still looking for
the pastor in refugee camps in Kenya.

July 3, 2009

Guirgis Bey, Egypt

Copts appealed to Mubarak for protection after two houses were burned down and
mobs tried to burn a priest and two cars.

July 7, 2009

Asmara, Eritrea

Fifteen monks were detained for allegedly planning actions against the "government's
interference." 2,800 Christians are believed to be imprisoned in Eritrea.

July 8, 2009

Egypt

Security forces are in collusion with Muslim mobs in carrying out acts
of violence and forced displacement all over the country. "The Coptic persecution
issue has become a permanent source of livelihood for them…"

July 8, 2009

Egypt

A Dubai imam has called upon the Egyptian government to give Christians more
land to build churches and to allow them to do so with the same ease with which
Muslims build mosques.

July 9, 2009

Algiers, Algeria

A GIA founder admitted to killing 7 monks in 1996.

July 10, 2009

Mogadishu, Somalia

Islamist rebels beheaded seven "Christians" and "spies."

July 10, 2009

Egypt

"Many Muslim scholars issued a fatwa, saying I must be killed," says a convert
from Islam to Christianity.

July 12, 2009

Ezbet Bassilious, Egypt

Muslims burned down a church and State Security, who watched the church burn
down but did nothing, charged a Copt for the act of arson.

July 14, 2009

Cairo, Egypt

Coptic church security thwarted an attempted attack by a veiled woman carrying
several weapons, rope, and anaesthetics just after children's religion classes
ended.

July 15, 2009

Khartoum, Sudan

Police flogged and fined 10 girls for wearing pants because it violates Sharia,
to which Christians are supposedly not subject.

Asia

June 4, 2009

Middle East

The War on Christianity in the Middle East. Christians suffer
horribly under radical Islam and the perpetrators get a free pass.

June 8, 2009

Punjab, Pakistan

A Christian man was raped and murdered for refusing to convert to Islam
after he was caught with a Muslim girl.

June 8, 2009

Iran

Iran has been severely persecuting Christians, particularly converts from Islam,
who are often imprisoned for apostasy. Ordinances which have existed for
30 years are now more strictly enforced than ever.

June 9, 2009

Gaza

Christians found at least 70 graves and several religious symbols vandalized
at their 200-year-old church

June 11, 2009

Dhaka, Bangladesh

A Catholic chef "has a really rough time" in jail after being picked up
for allegedly possessing illegal alcoholic beverages.

June 11, 2009

Punjab, Pakistan

Authorities attacked a Christian cemetery and seized a church, after Railway
authorities confiscated a church building. They are reportedly trying
obtain permission to demolish it.

June 11, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

A church center was threatened with a bomb attack if Christians did not
convert to Islam and pay a ransom.

June 12, 2009

Punjab, Pakistan

A Christian man was beaten and stabbed to death for drinking from a "Muslim
cup."

June 12, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

After a traffic accident, assailants attacked a pastor’s home, beat his mother
and sister-in-law with rifle butts, and threatened more violence if they did
not drop assault charges.

June 12, 2009

Singapore

A Protestant couple was found guilty of sedition for mailing religiously offensive
material to Muslims and has been sentenced to 8 weeks of jail time.

June 12, 2009

Philippines

The President announced that the Malaysian government was working to "reopen
talks [with Muslim separatist guerrillas] that stalled after rebel commanders
attacked Christian communities."

June 13, 2009

Hasilpur, Pakistan

A parcel bomb injured at least 10 Christians.

June 14, 2009

Manila, Philippines

A bomb placed in front of a school exploded, but nobody was injured, and another,
also placed in front of a school, was safely detonated.

June 14, 2009

Tiasar Town, Pakistan

Taliban militants shot an 11-year-old boy in the head during an attack on a
church.

June 15, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

Taliban factions threatened to rape, kill, and enslave non-Muslims unless they
paid the jizya.

June 15, 2009

Istanbul, Turkey

An Iranian Christian refugee was beaten for his faith.

June 15, 2009

Yemen

Seven of nine foreign hostages from an international relief group were found
murdered.

June 16, 2009

Sana'a, Yemen

Christian expats "review[ed] their arrangements" following the kidnapping and
murder of foreigners. The foreigners, it was later learned, were Christian aid workers. Update 7/20: The murders seem to be the work of a former
Gitmo detainee.

June 16, 2009

Middle East

Islamic extremism is diminishing the presence of Christians in several Middle
Eastern countries.

June 17, 2009

Mianwali, Pakistan

A talented Christian student was denied admission to study science at a
high school for being "too ugly."

June 18, 2009

Gaza, Judea and Samaria

Muslims harm Palestinian Christian Arabs, then blame Israeli Jews, as do
the media.

June 18, 2009

Pakistan

Muslims have tried to stop the construction of a wall around their church because
Muslims use the church’s land for livestock.

June 19, 2009

Kharian, Pakistan

Muslims accused a mentally challenged girl of blasphemy and interrogated
her for 16 hours.

June 21, 2009

Mindanao, Philippines

Separatist guerrillas killed one and injured 32 with grenades at a festival.

June 22, 2009

Bangladesh

A woman who converted to Christianity from Islam has been subject to "a climate
of exclusion" and pressured to divorce.

June 23, 2009

Maldives

Migrant workers, like natives, may only practice Sunni Islam, to the exclusion
of other faiths. They are subject to search and seizure of religious
materials.

June 23, 2009

Sialkot, Pakistan

A Christian man is languishing in jail on false charges after police broke his
backbone and they refuse to admit him to a hospital.

June 23, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

Co-workers beat a man after learning that he was a Christian.

June 24, 2009

Dushanbe, Tajikistan

A 12-year-old Protestant church was told that it must remove the extensions
it added onto it and vacate within 7 days. Minimal compensation was "offered." Another church was bulldozed 10 months prior and the promised compensation has
not been paid.

June 24, 2009

Midyat, Turkey

Mor Gabriel Syriac Monastery lost its "forestry" case against the State. Video backstory here.

June 25, 2009

Mosul, Iraq

Christian families left a building belonging to a church where some had lived
for 20 years due to fear of it being bombed because police are using it as a
guarding point.

June 25, 2009

Islamabad, Pakistan

Two Christians were beaten and detained on charges of blasphemy.

June 25, 2009

Manila, Philippines

Abu Sayyaf militants who continue to hold a Red Cross worker demanded a "ridiculous
amount" for his ransom.

June 25, 2009

Malatya, Turkey

The state failed to set aside funds to transport a key witness in the trial over
three stabbings of Christians. The man is one of two alleged masterminds
connecting the murders to a "deep-state" conspiracy.

June 26, 2009

Baku, Azerbaijan

Police warned Jehovah's Witnesses that their church would be shut down if children
were allowed to attend. Two women complained of being forcibly converted
during police interrogations.

June 27, 2009

Karachi, Pakistan

All five suspects apprehended for the murder of a Christian leader were acquitted
for the second time after the court ruled that there was a lack of evidence.

June 30, 2009

Baghdad, Iraq

Iraq witnesses the withdrawal of US troops. "Christian families did not
send their children to catechism classes for first communion, nor will
they in the coming days. They are waiting to see what will happen, they have
little confidence."

July 1, 2009

Iran

The growing Church will likely face persecution, but believers are uniting under mounting pressure.

July 1, 2009

Karachi, Pakistan

A Presbyterian pastor was attacked and kidnapped at gunpoint. His family
was reported to still be in danger.

July 2, 2009

Kasur, Pakistan

100 Christian families fled after angry mobs attacked and threatened to burn
their homes, accusing them of blasphemy. The mob then petrol-bombed their
homes and the nearby utilities. 9 women and 4 children were sent to Lahore
for treatment after being burned with acid -- and it still says so at Persecution.org. Update 7/03: 8 Christians were charged for the
rampage.

July 2, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

Police allegedly tortured a 16-year-old Christian boy to death. The
police are denying both the torture and any role in his death, claiming that
he probably died of cardiac arrest.

July 3, 2009

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

An American missionary was deported without cause.

July 3, 2009

Faisalabad, Pakistan

A Christian was tortured extensively and then detained on false blasphemy charges.

July 4, 2009

Iraq

Christians face grave security concerns as US troops withdraw.

July 4, 2009

East Java, Indonesia

Muslims blocked the construction of a home for disabled children by a prominent
secular charity out of fears that it would be a "front for proselytizing."

July 4, 2009

Jerusalem, Israel

A poll showed that PA Arabs are unwilling to grant land rights to Jews
or Christians in Jerusalem.

July 5, 2009

Cotabato, Philippines

A bomb blast by the Moro Liberation Front killed 5 and injured 35 at a Catholic
church. Video here.

July 7, 2009

Jakarta, Indonesia

Christians fight discrimination as they protest the revocation of their church's
permit and demand that the promise of a new seminary school's campus be fulfilled.

July 7, 2009

Tehran, Iran

Two Iranian women continue to be held in Evin prison because of their
faith, unfairly labeled as "anti-government activists." They have been
jailed since early March and fear execution for apostasy.

July 7, 2009

Kasur, Pakistan

A Christian man who was jailed for blasphemy is suffering due to harsh
treatment in prison and is not receiving medical care for heart disease.

July 7, 2009

Jolo, Philippines

Four explosions rocked Mindanao, killing at least 6 and wounding 56. The terrorist acts are believed to be the work of Abu Sayyaf.

July 7, 2009

Iligan City, Philippines

A car bomb went off, injuring 9, including 3 soldiers. Undetonated bombs
similar to those used in Jolo the same day were found strapped to the National
Grid Corp tower.

July 7, 2009

Uzbekistan

A Baptist man has been banned from meeting fellow believers and his books and
audio tapes were confiscated. A Protestant family was also punished for
worshipping and threatened with jail if they protested because "You are Forum
18 and I am Barack Obama."

July 9, 2009

Malaysia

Muslims have been spying on Catholic churches in order to determine if Christians
are trying to convert Muslims.

July 10, 2009

Aktau, Kazakhstan

State security and the justice system are targeting a Pentecostal church and
its members.

July 10, 2009

Cotobato, Philippines

Christians are organizing into militias after waves of terror attacks and
the their abandonment by UN, who suspended all aid to the local population and
withdrew its troops.

July 11, 2009

Swat, Pakistan

A prominent Islamic leader has threatened a "bloody revolution" if Sharia
is not implemented.

July 12, 2009

Baghdad, Iraq

Six churches were bombed on Sunday, killing 4 and inuring 32. Video here. Update: Make that seven.

July 12, 2009

Kirkuk, Iraq

A Christian municipal leader was assassinated in a predominantly Christian
neighborhood.

July 13, 2009

Mosul, Iraq

A car bomb exploded near a church, seriously damaging the building. Some
areas imposed curfews as the wave of bombings stretched
into its third day.

July 14, 2009

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Nine Christians were arrested for allegedly trying to convert Muslims.

July 14, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

Despite threats from the Taliban, Pakistani Catholics continue to work for the
good of the country.

July 14, 2009

Lahore, Pakistan

A prominent minority rights leader and two others were jailed on false assault
charges against a woman whose parents had brought her in to explain the consequences
of converting to Islam.

Europe

June 4, 2009

Milan, Italy

A terror cell which planned attacks against a subway system and the San Petronio
Cathedral in Bologna was apprehended.

June 4, 2009

Kosovo

"In Kosovo, a Muslim state has been allowed to spring up in the heart of
Europe," says the Prime Minister of Republika Srpska. (Video.)

June 9, 2009

Moldova

A new administrative code punishes "unregistered religious activity," making
life difficult for Protestants. Update 6/16: The European Court of Human Rights judged
that Moldova must provide more religious freedom, but registration applications
continue to be denied.

June 18, 2009

Bologna, Italy

A MP and women's rights activist has had a death fatwa issued against her after
she was "exposed as a Christian."

June 18, 2009

Netherlands

"Christians face submission or persecution," says a pastor.

June 18, 2009

Södertälje, Sweden

Assyrian refugees suffer at the hands of neighboring Muslims.

June 20, 2009

UK

The Church of England will confront the BBC over its treatment of Christianity.

June 21, 2009

Birmingham, UK

Muslim prisoners complained about sharing cells with and eating near infidels,
so now they get their own cells.

June 22, 2009

UK

"The BBC supports Islam and attacks Christianity, claims Radio 2 stalwart Don
Maclean."

June 26, 2009

London, UK

British Parliament discusses the humanitarian disaster affecting the Christians
of Iraq. (Video; Part II:
Discussion of Kurds stealing Assyrians' land.)

June 29, 2009

Gnjilane, Kosovo

Ethnic Albanians bulldozed and razed a monument dedicated to the Christian saint
Lazarus and his knights.

July 4, 2009

Sussex, UK

A Coptic family who suffers persecution back in Egypt is being deported after
receiving inadequate representation. Petition at link.

July 11, 2009

UK

Church leaders accuse the government of favoring Muslims and starving them of
state funds, making smaller churches' continued existence difficult in poorer
parts of the country.

July 13, 2009

UK

"Why is Britain deporting persecuted Christians?"

Everywhere

July 2, 2009

Q: "How is a [Muslim] woman to be punished if she marries a Christian?
How often is it carried out and in what countries is it most common?"

July 7, 2009

"[W]ith regard to non-Muslims who are at war with the Muslims
and do not have a peace treaty with the Muslims or are not living under Muslim
rule, then Muslims are commanded to kill them, because Allaah says…"

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