05/06/2024 India (International Christian Concern) – Radha is from a small village in India where her and her family’s Christian faith and marginalized status shaped her outlook on life. Limited by her family’s financial constraints, Radha could only pursue studies up to the intermediate level. Despite facing financial and social hardships, she worships the Lord every week at her local church. Last summer, ICC paid for Radha to take beautician training. She attended the courses regularly and graduated from the program with dreams of establishing a beauty parlor of her own in the village t ..read more

By Gregory Cochran, Ph.D., ICC Fellow  Researchers entering the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C., pass between two massive works of art: statues carved by sculptor Robert Aitken nearly a century ago. One of the statues borrows its inscription from the Bard of Avon, William Shakespeare. The well-worn quote applies fittingly to the interests of the National Archives. It reads simply, “What is past is prologue.”    Those who appreciate Shakespeare will recognize the quote for its role in exposing the sinister motives in the mind of Antonio, a dastardly ambitious ..read more

5/3/2024 Nigeria (International Christian Concern) — Armed “bandits” shot and killed Reverend Manasseh Ibrahim on Tuesday, April 23, in Kaduna state as he traveled to a church conference. The reverend served under the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) Kaduna Central District Church. Violence in Kaduna state, often directed toward Christians, has left thousands of believers in a state of fear. “Christians who are direct victims of banditry and insurgency in Kaduna state are fed up with the inability of the Nigerian government to find a lasting solution to the incessant killings of inno ..read more

5/3/2024 Iran (International Christian Concern) — On March 11, Iranian authorities charged house church member Shabeddin “Shahab” Shahi with “propaganda against the Islamic regime.” Shahi recently appeared at a Revolutionary Court in Karaj and is awaiting a second and final hearing at the sixth branch of the court. Shahi served four months in prison in 2019 on the same charge. Authorities re-arrested him in December 2023, along with fellow house church members Milad Goodarzi and Alireza Nourmohammadi. Goodarzi and Nourmohammadi, as well as Nourmohammadi’s brother, Amir Nourmohammadi, have ..read more

5/3/2024 Türkiye (International Christian Concern) — Officials in Türkiye recently detained more than 100 suspected members of the Islamic State group operating within its borders, confiscating weapons and explosives. Türkiye’s Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said one of the individuals arrested had allegedly planned an attack within the country. Yerlikaya said chemicals seized during a raid of the suspect’s apartment “were capable of causing large-scale explosions. The crackdown on the Islamic extremist group’s activity comes on the heels of an ISIS attack on March 22 in Russia that left at l ..read more

5/3/2024 Algeria (International Christian Concern) — Pastor Youssef Ourahmane of Algeria is facing a year of imprisonment after the Tizi Ouzou Court of Appeals upheld his conviction on Thursday. Authorities charged Ourahmane with practicing “unauthorized worship” in his role as vice president of the Evangelical Protestant Association of Algeria (EPA) and his service as senior pastor and overseer of several churches and Bible schools in Algeria.  Pastor Ourahmane is a convert from Islam and has served the Christian community of Algeria for more than 30 years.  In March 2023, authorities in ..read more

5/3/2024 Egypt (International Christian Concern) — A group of Islamists gathered on Friday, April 26, in the village of Al-Koum Al-Ahmar, Maghagha, Minya, to protest the construction of a church building. After the protests, a local Christian provided insight into the events, stating that the Evangelical church in Kom al-Ahmar had applied for a permit to build a church building on land purchased in 2000, finally receiving approval in October 2023. However, opposition arose from the community, citing an Orthodox church already in the village. Upon encountering resistance, local Christian commun ..read more

5/2/2024 Washington, D.C. (International Christian Concern) — On Wednesday, May 1, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its annual report, which outlines its recommendations for the U.S. State Department on actions relating to international religious freedom (IRF).  The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA) created USCIRF as an independent, bipartisan commission to make expert recommendations to the State Department regarding its actions relating to IRF. According to IRFA, each year, the president of the United States must recommend cou ..read more

5/2/2024 Armenia/Azerbaijan (International Christian Concern) — Delegates of Armenia and Azerbaijan are engaged in legal battles over the Artsakh conflict, arguing before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague. The litigation dates back to September 2021, when Armenia filed a suit accusing Azerbaijan of violating the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in 1965. Less than one week later, Azerbaijan accused Armenia of similar violations under the ICERD.  At the time, Armenia argued that ..read more

05/02/2024 USA (International Christian Concern) – The United States Supreme Court refused to try the case of the dismissal of Christian jurors from a Missouri trial regarding homosexuality on Feb. 26, 2024. The case of Missouri Department of Corrections V. Finney involves the harassment of Jean Finney that was because of her sexuality. A self-described lesbian who presents masculine, Finney experienced harassment in the workplace due to her relationship with a coworker’s ex-wife. While trying this case, however, three potential jury members were dismissed because of their “conservative C ..read more