Resources
Iranian Court Denies Retrial Requests for Christian Converts
Publication Date: 8/9/2022
Source: International Christian Concern
The Iranian Supreme Court has denied the retrial and release requests for Iranian Armenian Anooshavan Avedian, Christian convert Abbas Souri, and Christian convert Fariba Dalir. Courts rejected Avedian and Souri’s retrial requests without comment and did not review previous defense submissions.
Iran update on Christians summoned to serve sentences
Publication Date: 5/9/2022
Source: Middle East Concern
On 30 August MEC requested prayer for Iranian Christians ordered to present themselves at Evin Prison for their sentences to be carried out. Since then, Iranian-Armenian pastor Joseph Shahbazian has started serving his 10-year prison sentence and Christian convert Malihe Nazari is in the temporary quarantine section of Evin Prison, sentenced to six years’ imprisonment. Another Christian convert, Mina Khajavi, has been granted a temporary reprieve while she recovers from a broken leg.
European Court of Human Rights Denies Asylum for Iranian Christian Convert
Publication Date: 12/8/2022
Source: Decision Magazine
The European Court of Human Rights has denied an Iranian Christian convert’s application for asylum in Germany.
Hassan*, a 44-year-old cabinetmaker, applied for asylum in 2018. He testified before the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees that he had learned about Christianity in Iran through his wife’s brother.
Syrian Christians reopen Armenian church in HTS-dominated Idlib province for first time since 2011
Publication Date: 30/08/2022
Source: The New Arab
Syrian Christians have celebrated a mass at a church in the village of Yacoubia for the first time since 2011, under the protection of the hardline Islamist group HTS
Church Restored in Iraq to Help Christians Who Want to Stay
Publication Date: 7/10/2022
Source: FSSPX News
It is a beautiful day in Baghdeda, and families are flocking to the Church of St. Behnam and St. Sarah. The interior of the church is immaculate and the pews are crowded with faithful who have come to attend the Syro-Catholic liturgy.
The surrounding tranquility makes it hard to imagine that just eight years ago Baghdeda was fully occupied by Islamic State terrorists who destroyed the precious and ancient Christian heritage, and burned and emptied St. Behnam’s.
Christians in Bahrain: the Pope's visit consecrates the Kingdom as a place of coexistence and tolerance
Publication Date: 30/9/2022
Source: Agenzia Fides
The announced visit of Pope Francis to the Kingdom of Bahrain, scheduled for November 3-6, confirms and reinforces the choice of the Al Khalifa royal family, committed to raising the profile of the Kingdom as a place of dialogue, of tolerant welcome and peaceful coexistence between different identities and faith communities, in a world tormented by sectarian conflicts and "clash of civilizations". This is the context in which national media such as Al Ayyam Al Bahraini announce of forthcoming papal visit, collecting around this interpretation also the agreed opinions of well-known exponents of the local Christian communities.
Pope Francis picks Bahrain to relaunch dialogue with Islam and the East
Publication Date: 29/9/2022
Source: Asia News
In the wake of the historic visit to the United Arab Emirates (a first in the Gulf countries) in February 2019, the Holy See yesterday made official the news of Pope Francis' apostolic trip to Bahrain from 3 to 6 November.
Patriarchate of the Assyrian Church of the East opens its doors in Erbil
Publication Date: 14/9/2022
Source: The New Arab
The Assyrian Church of the East on Monday opened its new Patriarchate in Erbil, the capital city of the Iraqi Kurdistan region.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Masoud Barzani, president of the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Irvin Hicks, the general counsel of the United States in Erbil, Mar Awa Royel, the church's Patriarch, the Christian community, and other Kurdish officials.
