Asia
Iran: protests continue, protesters die in custody
The Iranian ministry of intelligence and security photographs demonstrations, so that the police can later arrest leaders who exhibit banners criticising the government. The regime will try to weather this latest round of…
Iran: widespread protests
In a few days protests spread across Iran, with demonstrations different in size, leadership and objectives from those in 2009. The protests started in Mashhad, when religious hardliners voiced legitimate economic grievances to…
North Korea: Christian survival
Every aspect of North Korean life is controlled by the state, which believes that there is no higher authority than Kim Jong-un. Christianity threatens this belief and must be crushed. Tens of thousands…
War-torn areas: shelter and relief
The word ‘shelter’ literally means a house, a tent, or a refuge. It arises from the command of Jesus that we are to ‘love our neighbour.’ This additionally implies providing food, clothing and…
Pakistan: persecution in churches and prisons
On 17 December, two suicide bombers targeted a Methodist church in Quetta, leaving nine dead and over fifty injured. Only one managed to detonate his vest: the second was killed by security forces.…
Iraq: victory parade
On 9 December, Iraqi forces recaptured the last areas still under IS control along the Syrian border and secured the western desert. This ended the war against the militants, three years after they…
Iran: Boris Johnson's visit
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s court case, at which she was expected to have her jail sentence extended, was postponed following the Foreign Secretary’s visit to Iran. Boris Johnson has said he held ‘worthwhile’ meetings in…
Philippines: Christian city gives refuge to Muslim refugees
In October Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte declared Marawi city liberated from the terrorists led by Malaysian Mahmud bin Ahmad. Marawi is now battle-scarred and broken, after two months of fierce fighting destroyed half…
Syria: Putin vows to rebuild Syria’s faith communities
President Putin told representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church: ‘Over the past few years the Russian state, alongside the Russian Orthodox Church and other religious organisations, has provided humanitarian aid to Syria. It…
Indonesia: new eruption threat
In September we reported that 122,500 people had been evacuated to locations outside a 7.5-mile exclusion area around Bali's Mount Agung volcano as magma rose during hundreds of daily tremors (see ). On…
