Newsfeed
Christian villagers under fire in Turkey-PKK clashes
Author: Yousif Musa
Publication Date: 17/6/2021
Source: Rudaw
Navkandalan is a Christian village in the Batifa sub-district of Zakho in northern Duhok.
The Christian population there has plummeted from 70 to 40 because of conflict between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Turkey.
The village’s residents demand protection.
3 detained for dancing on gate of Armenian church in İstanbul
Publication Date: 12/7/2021
Source: Turkish Minute
Three people were detained after videos circulating on social media showed them dancing on the gate of an Armenian church in İstanbul, sparking outrage among Turkey’s Armenian community and Armenian activists, according to a statement from the İstanbul Governor’s Office.
The incident took place at the Surp Takavor Church in Kadıköy.
How Turkey Eradicated Its Christian Minorities
Author: Rami Dabbas
Publication Date: 19/5/2021
Source: Israel Today
Christians represented 20 percent of the Turkish population at the beginning of the 20th century, but by today their number have decreased to a mere 0.2 percent.
The first Assyrians arrived in Armenia in 1805 from Turkey and Persia, a process that accelerated significantly in 1828 and between 1915-1918.
What caused this migration? What is the situation of Christian minorities in Turkey compared to in Armenia?
Suspects in Hate Crime Against Minya Coptic Christian Woman Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison
Publication Date: 16/6/2021
Source: Egyptian Streets
The Minya Criminal Court has sentenced 10 defendants to five years in prison each for their role in a wave of hate crimes committed against the Coptic Christian community in 2016 in the village of Korm in Abu Qurqas. The ruling, issued yesterday Tuesday the 16th of June, also acquitted 14 others due to insufficient evidence tying them to the crimes, which included acts of violence, vandalism and arson attacks against the Coptic Christian citizens of Abu Qurqas, Minya.
The violence broke out in May 2016 in the village of Korm following rumors of an interfaith affair between a Muslim woman and a Coptic Christian man, Attiya Daniel. Daniel’s mother, Soad Thabet, was targeted by angry mobs of Muslim villagers who dragged her out of her home, assaulted her, stripped her and paraded her naked in the streets.
Turkey’s Long Persecution Against Pontian Christians
Author: Uzay Bulut
Publication Date: Hellenic News
Source: 17/6/2021
In the Turkish city Trabzon, where few Christians are left, St. Maria Catholic Church has suffered its second attack this year. A gunman shot at the church on March 6, but there were no causalities because no one was inside at the time. The congregation is the only active one in Trabzon and has barely a dozen members.
International media first noticed St. Maria on February 5, 2006, when Oğuzhan Akdin murdered Father Andrea Santoro, an Italian Catholic priest who served there. In 2011, it emerged that the police had tapped Santoro’s phones for three months before his murder. Authorities had marked him as a suspect active in “separatist activities based on the Pontian Greek idea,” that is, establishing a Greek Orthodox state in the Black Sea area.
The Contested Politics of Coptic Diasporic Activism
Author: Michael Akladios & Miray Philips
Publication Date: 6/7/2021
Source: The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy
On November 6, 1972, assailants set fire to the headquarters of the Holy Bible Society in Al-Khanka, Qalyubia, because Coptic villagers had been using part of the building as an unlicensed church. A few days later in response, Pope Shenouda III ordered an entourage of priests and bishops to visit the village. Following a Coptic procession on November 12, local Muslim villagers staged demonstrations, fired into the crowd, and set half a dozen Coptic homes ablaze. President Anwar al-Sadat initiated a parliamentary investigation into the incident, resulting in a final report that recommended clarifying government procedures for licensing church construction and issuing permits—recommendations that were never followed through.
Turkey’s Treatment of Protestant Christians Reported to Human Rights Committee
Publication Date: 23/5/2021
Source: Persecution
A group of four NGOs submitted a report to the Human Rights Committee outlining the persecution against Protestant Christians in Turkey, specifically the impact of the restrictions of foreign Christians.
Turkey violates its own constitution as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Turkey adopted in 2003. Freedom of religion is restricted, particularly as it pertains to minority communities. When Turkey adopted the ICCPR, it did so with reservation to article 27 that protects minorities saying, “The Republic of Turkey reserves the right to interpret and apply the provisions of Article 27 of the ICCPR in accordance with the related provisions and rules of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey and the Treaty of Lausanne of 24 July 1923 and its Appendixes.” Under this, Protestant Christians face persecution.
Coptic Churches participate in the subscriptions for the celebrations of Eid al Adha, the Islamic Festival of Sacrifice
Publication Date: 22/6/2021
Source: Agenzia Fides
Daily coexistence between Muslim and Christian communities in Countries with an Islamic majority is often marked by problems and accidents, but it is also strewn with gestures of mutual generosity and codified customs that express attention and respect, especially in conjunction with their respective religious holidays.
US report blasts Turkey for restricting religious minorities
Publication Date: 14/5/2021
Source: Arab News
A new report released Wednesday follows a trend from the US State Department in criticizing Turkey for restricting the rights of non-Muslim religious groups in the country.
The latest report focused on the challenges non-Muslim religious groups have faced in operating houses of worship, holding board elections for their foundations, and obtaining exemptions from mandatory religion courses in schools, which are in violation of the European Court of Human Rights’ 2013 ruling.
Pope Tawadros II announces launch of Coptic Orthodox Church English website
Publication Date: 1/6/2021
Source: Ahram Online
Pope Tawadros II, the head of Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church, announced the launch of the Church’s official website in English, a statement by the Church read on Tuesday.
According to the statement, Pope Tawadros II said the launch of the English website targets new generations and Coptic youths residing in English speaking countries.
