Algeria Stalls Appeal of Convicted Christian

Another case of Muslim persecution of Christians. I a Muslim country, a mere accusation by a Muslimis enough to have a Christian arrested for "insulting" just about anything Islamic.

FROM COMPASSDIRECT.ORG:

Algeria Stalls Appeal of Convicted Christian

Court’s indefinite postponement of hearing said to reveal judicial foot-dragging.
ISTANBUL, December 15 (CDN) — A judge’s decision this month to indefinitely postpone the appeal of a Christian sentenced under Algeria’s defamation and anti-proselytizing laws shows how the judicial system keeps Christians locked up without officially punishing or acquitting them, according to sources.

In May a judge in Oran, 470 kilometers (292 miles) west of Algiers, sentenced a convert from Islam, Abdelkrim Siaghi, to a prison term of five years. He had been charged with insulting Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, and with “proselytism” for giving a Muslim a CD about Christianity. Siaghi (whose name is also spelled Siaghi Krimo) was also fined 200,000 dinars (US$2,663).

The prosecutor had reportedly requested that the judge sentence him to a two-year prison term and a fine of 50,000 dinars (US$665). The judge instead gave him the maximum sentence.

In Siaghi’s appeal, however, the judge has been unable to find any evidence against him and has postponed hearing dates several times. A scheduled Dec. 1 hearing was postponed indefinitely on that day, when judges were expected to pronounce a verdict, according to Siaghi’s lawyer.

“The process of the [appeal] inquiry is strange since the first judge with the same file gave a maximum sentence – five years of prison and a fine of 200,000 dinars,” said Mustapha Krim, president of the Protestant Church of Algeria (EPA).

Article continues HERE.

Muslim Persecution of Christians October, 2011

Here's Raymond Ibrahim's monthly account of Muslim persecution of Christians for October, 2011.

FROM HUDSON-NY.ORG:

Muslim Persecution of Christians October, 2011

"The World Remains Silent; It Is As If We Had Been Swallowed Up by The Night."

by Raymond Ibrahim
November 17, 2011 at 4:45 am

Egypt's Maspero massacre—where the military killed dozens of Christians protesting the destruction of their churches—dominates October's persecution headlines. Facts and details concerning the military's "crimes against humanity" are documented in this report, and include videos of armored-vehicles running over civilians, a catalog of lies and deceitful tactics employed by Egypt's rulers and state media, and other matters overlooked by the West.

More damning evidence continues to emerge: not only did Egypt's military plan to massacre Christians to teach them a "lesson" never to protest again, but "death squads" were deployed up buildings the night before to snipe at protesters. Instead of trying the soldiers who intentionally ran-over demonstrators, the military has been randomly arresting Copts simply "for being Christian." Finally, the fact-finding commission of Egypt's National Council for Human Rights just submitted its report which, as expected, "white washes" the military's role, "asserting that no live ammunition was fired on the protesters by the military, as the army only fired blanks in the air to disperse the protesters," a claim eyewitnesses reject out of hand.

Meanwhile, not only are Western governments apathetic, but it was revealed that "Obama's top Muslim advisor blocks Middle Eastern Christians' access to White House." Newt Gingrich asserted that Obama's "strategy in the Middle East is such a total grotesque failure" and likened the "Arab spring" to an "anti-Christian spring." Ann Widdecombe accused the British government of "double standards in its threats to cut aid to countries which persecute gay people while turning a blind eye to persecution against Christians." Even Christian pastors in the West, apparently more concerned about promoting interfaith dialogue with Muslims, are reluctant to mention persecution to their flock

Categorized by theme, the rest of October's batch of Muslim persecution of Christians around the world includes (but is hardly limited to) the following accounts, listed according to theme and in alphabetical order by country, not necessarily severity.

Report continues HERE.

12 Year Old Christian Girl Gang Raped & Converted by Muslims

Officials in Sudan Threaten to Raze Three Church Buildings

Like Indonesia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Sudan is systematically destroying all traces of Christianity.

Anyone see a trend here?

FROM COMPASSDIRECT.ORG:

Officials in Sudan Threaten to Raze Three Church Buildings

Christian leaders say authorities are gathering information on churches, activities.

KHARTOUM, Sudan, October 12 (CDN)

Local authorities have threatened to demolish three church buildings in Omdurman as part of a long-standing bid to rid Sudan of Christianity, Christian sources told Compass.

Officials from the Ministry of Physical Planning and Public Utilities-Khartoum State appeared at the three church sites in Omdurman, on the Nile River opposite Khartoum, the afternoon of Sept. 11, threatening to demolish the structures if the churches continued to conduct worship services, church leaders said.

Church leaders from the three churches in the Madinat al Fath area of Omdurman – the Sudanese Church of Christ, the Episcopal Church of Sudan and the Roman Catholic Church – said they were surprised to see government officials come to their church premises and accuse them of operating churches on government land without permission. The church leaders told Compass the buildings were not located on government land and required no permission.

They said that, starting at 2 p.m. the officials asked leaders of the Sudanese Church of Christ who had given them permission to build on government land, and then proceeded to the other two churches. The officials marked the three church buildings for demolition with red crosses, saying, “We are going to demolish these churches,” the church leaders said.

Article continues HERE.

Muslim Persecution of Christians: September, 2011

Raymond Ibrahim has put together a synopsis of Christian persecution, abuse and murder in Muslim countries for September. And this is only a small sampling of the daily Muslim bigotry and hatred against all other religions.

FROM HUDSON-NY.ORG:

Muslim Persecution of Christians: September, 2011

by Raymond Ibrahim
October 12, 2011 at 5:00 am

An especially busy month in the persecution of Christians in the Muslim world, September also witnessed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton release the Annual Report on International Religious Freedom. Ironically, aside from Iran and Sudan, none of the countries that habitually appears in this series was designated among the "countries of particular concern," defined by the State Department as countries that are "engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom."

Egypt, for instance—which this year alone has seen over fifty Christians killed, their many churches burned or bombed, and their daughters kidnapped and forcibly converted—was not listed as a "country of particular concern," despite the fact that the U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom, an independent, bipartisan federal government commission, has recommended that the State Department designate it so.

Neither was Pakistan cited as a "country of particular concern." According to CNS news, "Clinton did not designate Pakistan even though the State Department's own report stated that Pakistani law calls for the death penalty for people who commit 'blasphemy' against Islam or who convert from Islam to another religion—and even though the report listed multiple instances of the Pakistani government using the law to persecute Christians."

September alone saw the following in Pakistan:

Article continues HERE.

Muslims shut down Protestant church

And as in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Christians are being hounded out of existence. It's long past time to stop calling Indonesia a tolerant Muslim majority country and call it what it is; a festering Islamic fever swamp about to explode.

FROM CHRISTIANPERSECUTION.INFO:

Muslims shut down Protestant church

Posted on: 2011-10-11 08:47:20
By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Correspondent

JATINANGOR, INDONESIA (Worthy News)-- Muslims of the Islamic Defender Front aided by local officials recently shut down a Protestant church in Jatinangor on rumors that the church was a haven for newly baptised Christians.

Rev. Bernard Maukar, head of the Christian community, was also accused of proselytising in a predominantly Muslim area.

The chief of the village where the church is located said he had the right to close it down because it was within his jurisdiction.

"This area is under my authority," said Arief Saefolah. "Please, get out as soon as possible."

Saefolah and other local officials seized all Christian property, including furniture, musical instruments, and vehicles.

A Christian woman lamented that the police didn't lift a finger to stop the vandalism.

"Police have no guts against this radical group," she said.

Not a Single Christian Church Left in Afghanistan, Says State Department

Not a single church, or synagogue either. Afghanistan must be proud to be as intolerant as Saudi Arabia.

"However, “the right to change one’s religion was not respected either in law or in practice,” according to the State Department.

“Muslims who converted away from Islam risked losing their marriages, rejection from their families and villages, and loss of jobs,” according to the report. “Legal aid for imprisoned converts away from Islam remains difficult due to the personal objection of Afghan lawyers to defend apostates.”

And yet the dhimmi and clueless state department fails to acknowledge that the greatest threat to apostates is death at the hands of enraged Muslims.

FROM CSNSNEWS.COM:

Not a Single Christian Church Left in Afghanistan, Says State Department

By Edwin Mora
October 10, 2011

There is not a single, public Christian church left in Afghanistan, according to the U.S. State Department.

This reflects the state of religious freedom in that country ten years after the United States first invaded it and overthrew its Islamist Taliban regime.

In the intervening decade, U.S. taxpayers have spent $440 billion to support Afghanistan's new government and more than 1,700 U.S. military personnel have died serving in that country.

The last public Christian church in Afghanistan was razed in March 2010, according to the State Department's latest International Religious Freedom Report. The report, which was released last month and covers the period of July 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010, also states that “there were no Christian schools in the country.”

“There is no longer a public Christian church; the courts have not upheld the church's claim to its 99-year lease, and the landowner destroyed the building in March [2010],” reads the State Department report on religious freedom. “[Private] chapels and churches for the international community of various faiths are located on several military bases, PRTs [Provincial Reconstruction Teams], and at the Italian embassy. Some citizens who converted to Christianity as refugees have returned.”

In recent times, freedom of religion has declined in Afghanistan, according to the State Department.

“The government’s level of respect for religious freedom in law and in practice declined during the reporting period, particularly for Christian groups and individuals,” reads the State Department report.

“Negative societal opinions and suspicion of Christian activities led to targeting of Christian groups and individuals, including Muslim converts to Christianity," said the report. "The lack of government responsiveness and protection for these groups and individuals contributed to the deterioration of religious freedom.”

Most Christians in the country refuse to “state their beliefs or gather openly to worship,” said the State Department.

Article continues HERE.

The forgotten Christians of the East

Here's an outstanding analysis of the persecution of Christians by the Muslim world. A persecution that is being ignored by Western governments out of fear of Muslim rioting and violence.

FROM JEWISHWORLDREVIEW.COM:

Jewish World Review Oct 12, 2011 / 13 Tishrei, 5772

The forgotten Christians of the East

By Caroline B. Glick

It is unclear what either Western governments or Western churches think they are achieving by turning a blind eye to the persecution of Christians in the Muslim world

On Sunday night, Egyptian Copts staged what was supposed to be a peaceful vigil at Egypt's state television headquarters in Cairo. The 1,000 Christians represented the ancient Christian community of some 8 million whose presence in Egypt predates the establishment of Islam by several centuries. They gathered in Cairo to protest the recent burning of two churches by Islamic mobs and the rapid escalation of state-supported violent attacks on Christians by Muslim groups since the overthrow of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak in February.

According to Coptic sources, the protesters Sunday night were beset by Islamic attackers who were rapidly backed up by military forces. Between 19 and 40 Copts were killed by soldiers and Muslim attackers. They were run over by military vehicles, beaten, shot and dragged through the streets of Cairo.

State television Sunday night reported only that three soldiers had been killed. According to al-Ahram Online, the military attacked the studios of al-Hurra television on Sunday night to block its broadcast of information on the military assault on the Copts.

Apparently the attempt to control information about what happened worked. Monday's news reports about the violence gave little indication of the identity of the dead or wounded. They certainly left untold the story of what actually happened in Cairo on Sunday night.

In a not unrelated event, Lebanon's Maronite Catholic Patriarch Bechara Rai caused a storm two weeks ago. During an official visit to Paris, Rai warned French President Nicolas Sarkozy that the fall of the Assad regime in Syria could be a disaster for Christians in Syria and throughout the region. Today the Western-backed Syrian opposition is dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood. Rai cautioned that the overthrow of President Bashar Assad could lead to civil war and the establishment of an Islamic regime.

Article continues HERE.

Egypt Destroying Churches, One at a Time

Well, it's pretty obvious by now, even to the knowingly naive that Egypt is fast on the road to a radical Muslim Brotherhood dominated government. That is to say, a Sharia "government".

The Brotherhood is using the built in Islamic hatred of Christianity to ramp up votes in the coming elections.

FROM HUDSON-NY.ORG:

Egypt Destroying Churches, One at a Time
Muslim Brotherhood: "No More Churches"

by Raymond Ibrahim
October 10, 2011 at 5:00 am

What clearer sign that Egypt is turning rabidly Islamist than the fact that hardly a week goes by without a church being destroyed, or without protesting Christians being attacked and slaughtered by the military?

The latest chaos in Egypt—where the military opened fire on unarmed protesters, and ran armored vehicles over them— killing 35 and injuring over 300, with the count still rising --originated in Edfu, a onetime tourist destination renowned for its pharaonic antiquities, but now known as the latest region to see a church destroyed by a Muslim mob.

This destruction, which spurred the unrest in Egypt, is itself eye-opening as to the situation in Egypt. To sum it up, St. George Coptic church, built nearly a century ago, was so dilapidated that the local council and governor of Aswan approved renovating it, and signed off on the design.

It was not long before local Muslims began complaining and making various demands, including that the church be devoid of crosses and bells—even though the permit had approved them—citing that "the Cross irritates Muslims and their children."

Coptic leaders had no choice but to acquiesce, "pointing to the fact that the church was rebuilt legally, and any concessions on the part of the church was done for the love for the country, which is passing through a difficult phase."

Acquiescence breeds more demands: Muslim leaders next insisted that the very dome of the church be removed—so that the building might not even resemble a church—and that it be referred to as a "hospitality home." Stating that removing the dome would. Most likely collapse the church, the bishop refused.

Article continues HERE.

Christian pastor in Iran is facing execution

FROM THERELIGIONOFPEACE.COM:


This Christian pastor in Iran is facing execution for apostasy under Islamic law without a peep of protest from CAIR, which is too busy slamming opponents of Sharia in the West as "Islamophobes". But if Sharia is allowed here, how likely is it that observant Muslims will want to be told which parts of Allah’s law can and can’t be practiced?

NGO report: 93,000 Copts left Egypt since March

This is what will happen to all Christians in the Middle East as the Muslim Brotherhood takes over. Not that Egyptians in or Muslims in general need the Brotherhood to persecute Copts or any other minority. Note that the persecution of religious minorities only happens when Muslims are in power, never when there is a chance the persecuted might fight back.

The Western nations should prioritize the immigration of Christians and all other minorities at the expense of Muslim immigrants until such time as Islamic countries treat other religions with the respect they demand for themselves. Do not bed decieved by the Brotherhood's taqyya saying Christians will be accepted into their political party.

FROM ALMASRYALYOUM.COM:

NGO report: 93,000 Copts left Egypt since March
Emad Khalil
Sun, 25/09/2011 - 15:15

Nearly 93,000 Coptic Christians have left Egypt since 19 March, a report by an Egypt-based Coptic NGO has said.

The number may increase to 250,000 by the end of 2011, according to Naguib Gabriel, the head of the Egyptian Federation of Human Rights, which released the report.

The current trend of Coptic immigration endangers the structure of Egypt's population, Gabriel told Al-Masry Al-Youm on Sunday. He urged the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and the Egyptian cabinet to work on curbing the phenomenon.

Gabriel based the data stated in the report on information from Coptic churches and communities abroad.

"Nearly 16,000 migrated to California, while 10,000 moved to New Jersey, 8000 to New York, and 8000 to other American states," according to Gabriel. "Around 14,000 left to Australia, 17,000 to Canada, and 20,000 settled in the Netherlands, Italy, England, Austria, Germany and France."

Gabriel attributed the Coptic emigration to hardline Salafi groups seeking to apply Islamic law, deny Copts senior government posts, and reduce incoming tourism. He also blamed attacks on Coptic churches and the government's failure to bring attackers to justice.

Coptic author Kamal Zakher said the numbers in the report were exaggerated, but that concern over Coptic immigration is justifiable.

Migration procedures take up to a year to complete, so it is illogical to say the January revolution caused the Copts to leave the country, Zakher said.

The head of the Evangelical denomination in Egypt, Safwat al-Bayadi, also voiced his anxiety about Coptic immigration, noting that the continuation of the trend depends on the political forces ruling the country in the future.

Christians form nearly 10 percent of Egypt’s population. Following the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak in February, concerns have been growing among Christians over the mounting political influence of Islamist groups, some of which view Copts as infidels and deny them the right to assume top government posts.

However, Egypt’s biggest Islamist group, the Muslim Brotherhood, had stressed Christians' right to the presidency and accepted them as members in its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party.

Save Asia Bibi, Mr. President

Here again we see the true face of Islam. This is what will eventually happen in the West if Islam becomes the dominate force. As extrem as this seems to Westerners, it is only normal in the Muslim world. Even in so called moderate Islamic nations such as Indonesia, the hard core, most pious Muslims are slowly imposing more and more strict interpertations of the Quran upon the masses.

FROM TOWNHALL.COM

Save Asia Bibi, Mr. President

By Terry Jeffrey

9/21/2011

Asia Bibi, a mother of five, hails from one of only two Christian families that lived in the Pakistani village of Ittanwali.

In June 2009, she was working with a group of Muslim women, picking berries in a field. She was sent to fill a bucket with drinking water. When she returned, the Muslim women would not drink from it. It was impure, they said, having been touched by a Christian.

What Bibi said then is a matter of dispute.

A local police officer later told CNN what Bibi's accusers claimed she said.

"(T)he Quran is fake, and your prophet remained in bed for one month before his death because he had worms in his ears and mouth," the policeman said Bibi is alleged to have said. "He married Khadija just for money and after looting her kicked her out of her house."

Bibi denied it. "I would never even think of blasphemy," she later explained in a television interview.

Immediately after the argument in the field, nothing happened.

However, according to news reports, the Muslim women went to a local cleric and accused Bibi of blasphemy.

CNN reported that Section 295 C of the Pakistani penal code says: "Whoever ... defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) shall be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine."

For five days after the incident in the field, according to the London Telegraph, Bibi was surrounded by a mob.

"They said she had told them Jesus had been resurrected while Muhammed had died -- claims her supporters emphatically deny -- and demanded she recant and convert to Islam," the Telegraph reported.

The police took Bibi into custody for her own protection.

"The police station was crowded by the Muslim ulemas (religious scholars)," the Pakistani Minister of Religious Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti, a Catholic, told The Washington Post. "They said, 'If you will not register the case, she will be killed at this spot right now.'"

Blasphemy charges were filed against Bibi. She was imprisoned for a year and a half. Then, in November 2010, she was tried in a local court and, according to the Telegraph, was "convicted on the evidence of two witnesses who were not present in the fields where the exchange is supposed to have taken place."

Asia Bibi's five children and her husband became fugitives in their own country -- even though they had committed no crime. Fearing their neighbors, they moved from place to place, sheltered by courageous allies.

"I keep getting phone calls from people with hidden numbers asking where I am and whether they can meet me, but I know what they want," the husband told the Telegraph. "They want us dead."

Others were martyred.

Bhatti, the Catholic minister of religious minorities, investigated the Bibi case and recommended to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, the widower of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, that Bibi be pardoned. He also recommended Pakistan's blasphemy law be changed.

Salman Taseer, the Muslim governor of the Punjab, backed Bibi's petition for a pardon. "I am going to take this petition to the president, and the president will forgive her," Taseer said, according to The Associated Press.

In January 2010, one of Taseer's bodyguards shot him in the back -- and then confessed.

When he entered court the next day, according to National Public Radio, "young lawyers ... showered the assassin with rose petals."

A month after Taseer's assassination, Bhatti told the Christian Post: "I received a call from the Taliban commander and he said, 'If you will bring any changes in the blasphemy law and speak on this issue, then you will be killed. ... I don't believe that bodyguards can save me after the assassination (of Taseer). I believe in the protection from heaven."

In March 2010, assassins gunned Bhatti down in his car.

The BBC then reported that Bhatti had "recorded a statement in December, and asked that it be sent to the BBC in the event of his death."

"I am living for my community, and for suffering people, and I will die to defend their rights," Bhatti said in the statement.

Last week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton released her department's annual International Religious Freedom Report. It listed eight "Countries of Particular Concern" that had "engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom."

Pakistan was not one of them.

The report did say that "after initially signaling he was considering pardoning Aasia Bibi's death penalty sentence for alleged blasphemy, President Zardari refrained from doing so."

The State Department said Bibi remains in custody.

President Barack Obama came to office offering a new vision for American diplomacy in the Muslim world. Here is his chance to prove it works. He should rally the leaders of all the major Muslim nations -- including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which enjoy close relations with the United States -- to call on Pakistan to pardon and free Asia Bibi and let her and her family come to America.

He should challenge them openly and boldly to give the whole world an opportunity to see their commitment to tolerance and freedom of conscience.

Authorities Refused Treatment to Christian Who Died in Pakistan Prison

Another fine example of Muslim kindness and charity and Pakistani judicial complicity in the persecution of Christians.

FROM GLOBAL.CHRISTIANPOST.COM:

The Christian Post > International > World|Tue, Sep. 20 2011 11:32 PM EDT

Authorities Refused Treatment to Christian Who Died in Pakistan Prison

By Luiza Oleszczuk | Christian Post Contributor

A Christian man accused of blasphemy in Pakistan died of tropical fever in prison on Sept. 9, after the prison authorities refused him treatment, The Christian Post has learned Tuesday.

Aslam Masih died reportedly of the dengue virus, an infectious tropical disease.

Jonathan Racho, the Regional Manager for South Asia at the International Christian Concern (ICC), an advocacy group, told The Christian Post that a local human rights organization had appealed to the prison authorities to provide Masih with proper medical treatment, but the authorities refused, quoting security reasons.

“We’ve received the information last week, but we needed to confirm it with our local contact,” Racho told The Christian Post.

“If somebody’s in jail,” he commented on the incident. “The prison authorities have an obligation to provide that person with medical treatment. Otherwise it’s a violation of human rights. This was a preventable death.”

The blasphemy law is one of the most controversial laws in Pakistan, according to Racho. It says that whoever offends Prophet Muhammad will face capital punishment.

For offending the Quran, the punishment is a lifetime prison sentence.

Masih was reportedly arrested in 2010 after having been accused of blasphemy by two members of the Tablighi Jammat, an Islamic group.

“Once again, Pakistan has shown its contempt for the lives of its religious minorities,” Racho wrote in a press release. “We urge the international community to pressure Pakistan protect the rights of Christians and other vulnerable groups in the country.”

Racho told The Christian Post that people are held accountable to the blasphemy law regardless of their religion, including Muslims, but that it is most often used to persecute religious minorities.

The incident added to a row of deaths and arrests related to the persecution of Christians in Pakistan in the past years.

In March, a Pakistani Christian man sentenced to a lifetime in prison for blasphemy was found dead in prison. The authorities said he had died of natural causes.

The man, Qamar David, had been accused of blasphemy by his business partner.

One of the most famous cases of the persecution of Christians in Pakistan is the case of Asia Bibi, the first woman in that country to be sentenced to death for alleged blasphemy.

Bibi, still awaiting the solution of her case, had been accused of blasphemy by fellow field workers. A mother of five, she was sentenced to death by hanging for allegedly speaking ill of Prophet Muhammad. She denied the charges.

Ninety-five percent of Pakistan’s population is Muslim, with 75 percent Sunni and 20 percent Shia. Only five percent practice Christianity and Hinduism, according to the CIA fact book.

Christian Persecution by Muslims

Here's a link to over 75 videos showing the brutal treatment of Christians by Muslims in every corner of the globe.

FROM BARE NAKED ISLAM:

Christian graveyard grounds for mosque

Well gee, another in a long line of Muslim desecrations Christian graveyards.  However this is small potatoes compared to the Cordoba House Mosque proposed at Ground Zero.  But the Cordoba House and this mosque have the exact same intention:  A symbol of Islamic supremacy over non-Muslims.

FROM ONENEWSNOW.COM:

Christian graveyard grounds for mosque

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow - 9/14/2010 3:30:00
GraveA cleric of hard-line Muslims has constructed a mosque on a Christian cemetery in Pakistan.

Muslims in Sargodha, Pakistan, were led by a hard-line cleric to construct the mosque at that particular location. It was originally believed the workers were building an addition to the already existing mosque, but the group has been desecrating Christians' graves. According to the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA), the government issued an order to halt construction, but building resumed in spite of that.

Jonathan Racho of International Christian Concern (ICC) does not deem this news surprising.

Pakistan"We know that the Islamic faith is very much aggressive, and Islam expanded over a large part of the world through the use of jihad and the use of force, and they have been using this in many countries, including Pakistan," he points out.

He adds that Muslims use force to expel or otherwise subdue Christians, which can be carried out by placing a mosque on a Christian cemetery. But even if the Christians were able to go to court and prove wrongdoing, Racho explains that "in this particular case, according to Pakistani laws, no religious place could be demolished."

So the mosque is there to stay. In addition to this desecration, Muslims have threatened to take action if the Christians challenge them. Meanwhile, Pakistan recently suffered extensive flooding, and ICC has learned of cases where Christians were refused aid unless they agreed to convert to Islam.

Christian church and school set on fire in Punjab because of the ‘Burn-the-Qur‘an’ proposal

The headline here blames the burning of a Christian church and school in Punjab on the almost burning of a Koran by the Rev Terry Jones in Florida.  Actually, the blame for the burnings lies entirely with the barbaric and violent "religion" of Islam. Once again, Muslims have acted in a frenzied mob to burn buildings and attack non-Muslims simply because they ARE non-Muslims.  Intolerance of non-Muslims is one of its founding premises.

Arson and terror attacks cannot be justified by the burning of a book. These attacks on Christians are just more of 1400 years of attacks on non-Muslims.  Violence and intimidation are primary tools of Islam to propagate its spread.

This is what is coming to the West, Muslim immigrant by Muslim immigrant.

FROM ASIANEWS.IT:

Christian church and school set on fire in Punjab because of the ‘Burn-the-Qur‘an’ proposal

by Nirmala Carvalho

Protests against insulting the Qur’an continue in India. In predominantly Muslim areas, a mob burns a church and a school. At least 11 people, including demonstrators and a police agent, are killed. The authorities impose a curfew. Christians condemn the violence.

New Delhi (AsiaNews) – Muslim extremists set fire to a Church and to a Christian school in Punjab in reaction to the proposed Qur‘an burning by Rev Terry Jones, a US clergyman, in order to commemorate 9/1, an action he later abandoned but still caused protests among Muslims and anti-Christian violence. In India, the latter have taken a distinctly political and separatist tone. The resulting incidents with police left 11 people dead.

The Christian Society Mission School was set on fire this morning in Tangmarg, near Gulmarg. Rumours had already spread that it might be targeted but the authorities ignored them. When fire fighters tried to the wood-made church, they were stopped by a mob. The entire building burnt to the ground but students were not hurt.

However, this was not the only act of violence. Demonstrators also stormed a government building and clashed with police. Seven people were killed, including a police officer. Four more people died in earlier protests.

“The [church] fire was fuelled by both rumours of an alleged burning of the Qur‘an and the political situation” in the state, Mgr Peter Celestine, bishop of Jammu-Srinagar, told AsiaNews. “Witnesses said that hundreds of people were on streets yesterday night.” From there, they “barged into the school building and set it ablaze. Curfew has been imposed.”

Anti-government Islamic protests are commonplace in the state. At least 70 demonstrators have been killed by police in the past three months. The ‘Burn-the-Qur‘an’ issue was just a pretext to vent anti-government feelings.

“The proposal to burn the Qur‘an’, even though it was abandoned, created a very tense situation. Fear and anxiety are widespread. Christians constitute only 0.0014 per cent of the population. So far, we have had cordial relations with our Muslim brothers and the authorities, but this initiative is cause for concern,” the bishop said.

In Punjab last night, an angry crowd burnt a church and various cars parked in Loha Bazar in the city of Malerkotla, Sangrur District, a predominantly Muslim area, because of Rev Jones’ proposal. The authorities have imposed a curfew until 6 pm fearing more violence.
READ IT ALL:

Pakistan: some Christians denied aid unless they convert to Islam

Christian charity compared to Islamic charity.  Christian charity is given to everyone.  Islamic charity is given only to Muslims (and only to the "correct" sect).

FROM CATHOLICCULTURE.ORG:

Pakistan: some Christians denied aid unless they convert to Islam
September 06, 2010

The head of an organization that combats anti-Christian persecution charges that some Pakistani Christian families are being denied flood aid unless they convert to Islam.

“Some Christian refugees are openly denied aid, while others are told to leave or convert to Islam,” said Carl Moeller, president and CEO of Open Doors USA. “You can imagine that terrible choice: either you abandon your faith or you cannot feed your child.”

The Fides news agency has collected testimony from several Christians who have been denied aid:

# “We were overcome by waters and we lost everything,” said Zubair Masih. “We went to a refugee camp near Thatta, but they did not allow us to enter because we are Christians.”

# “My wife is sick, but the doctor refused to visit her and treat her, saying that we should wait for the World Health Organization to send Christian doctors,” said Abid Masih.

# “I arrived with my family at a camp near Hyderabad, but the camp administration refused to register us because we are Christians and they did not give us anything,” said Aamir Gill. “We were forced to leave.”

A Pakistani bishop said that the Church, in contrast, does not discriminate in assisting the victims of the worst flooding in the nation’s history.

“The tireless work of Caritas continues in all directions, in every diocese and without discrimination on the recipients,” said Bishop Max John Rodrigues of Hyderabad. “In the diocese, we help everyone. Many religious and Catholic volunteers are working in the area. I see a lot of solidarity: Muslims, Christians, and Hindus are united in suffering.

“As far as the aid brought by Islamic charity groups, they defend themselves by saying that according to their doctrine, the money from the zakhat (Islamic alms) should go only to Muslims,” he added. “We should keep in mind that in this country there is a general discrimination against minorities and the poorest workers. It is a widespread mentality which can also affect this tragedy. The fact that the rich are better off than the poor, having saved their own land, is a serious matter which the government must address.”

Easy Targets? Sweden Deporting Iraqi Asylum Seekers: Just Not Muslims

Taking the fall? Iraqi Christians praying at Johannes Church in Sodertalje, Sweden

 

The persecution of Christians by Muslims on a world wide basis is surpassed in evil only by the West's refusal to aid them.





FROM UNDHIMMI.COM:

Easy Targets? Sweden Deporting Iraqi Asylum Seekers: Just Not Muslims

August 15th, 2010 | Author: Un:dhimmi

This report from the BBC’s ‘From our Own Correspondent’ series, looks at the Swedish Government’s recent deportation of Iraqis from Sweden. What seems unusual about the current wave of deportations is the the subjects are Assyrian Christians, possibly the most endangered Iraqis of all:  Although Sweden once led the way in welcoming Iraqi refugees, the authorities are now clamping down and Iraqi asylum seekers are increasingly faced with deportation.

Jakob’s family have been threatened with death in Iraq unless they convert.I have just spent a week meeting some very angry, very frightened people.

Lilian, for example, who cleans a house in Sodertalje. And George, who does odd jobs and shares a basement room in Gothenburg. And Jakob who is 20 and goes to high school in Gustavsberg outside Stockholm.

They did not want to tell me their real names for fear of being identified, both in Sweden and at home, because they are all Christians from Iraq who went to Sweden to seek asylum and they have all had their asylum requests turned down.

This they find hard to understand. I have seen the court judgement that confirmed Jakob’s refusal.
It cites several threats made against him and his family in Iraq, in which they are told to convert to Islam or be killed.

One of these threats was delivered by eight masked men armed with pistols who broke into their flat in Baghdad early one morning. They all tell similar stories of kidnap and ransom, of churches being bombed, of death threats.
Appeal.

In the last two years, Sweden has deported more than 500 Iraqis. And they are baffled by the attitude of the Swedish authorities. There are no human rights in Sweden, they say, even animals are treated better here. Unfair as that may be, it is a line I hear more than once.

I am taken to meet Lilian by Nuri Kino, a journalist who has devoted a lot of time to the plight of Iraqi asylum seekers in Sweden. On the motorway down to Sodertalje, he tells me he has been on the phone to Lilian’s lawyer that morning and she has just been told that Lilian’s appeal has been rejected. The lawyer, he says, does not dare tell her yet – and he is not going to either.

Both hands come off the steering wheel as he gesticulates furiously.

The town has a large community of Assyrian Christians. They have come from Turkey and Lebanon, Iraq and Syria.
Nuri himself is one. He was born in Turkey and came to Sweden during the Cyprus crisis of 1974.
READ IT ALL:

Iran Pastor Facing Execution, Church Official

The rabid mullocrocy of Iran knows no bounds.  Stoning women, hanging homosexuals, whipping those with the "wrong" hairstyle are all par for the course.  Now we find they may execute a Christian preacher for simply being a Christian preacher.

FROM BOSNEWSLIFE.COM:

BREAKING NEWS: Iran Pastor Facing Execution, Church Official
Tuesday, July 13, 2010 (8:50 am)

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has reportedly said the government needed to halt the growing movement of house churches across Iran.

TEHRAN, IRAN (BosNewsLife)-- A well-known Iranian pastor faces execution after two judges agreed to make him "liable to capital punishment," as part of a crackdown on the growing Protestant church movement in the Islamic nation, BosNewsLife learned Tuesday, July 13.

Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani was detained in June along with wife Fatemeh Pasandideh in the city of Rasht in northwestern Iran because of their Christian activities, Iranian Christians said.

A senior pastor of the Church of Iran movement, which includes house churches across the country, told BosNewsLife that judges had "already signed" an Islamic order that would potentially allow a death sentence for Nadarkhani, pending further investigations. The pastor usually speaks on condition of anonymity to BosNewsLife amid security concerns.

News of the execution overshadowed joy over the release of two Church of Iran Christians, a man and a woman, and the expected release this week on bail of two other members, who the movement only identified as "brothers Mehdi and Afshin."

MORE DETENTIONS

They were part of a group of eight Church of Iran members detained June 18, the senior pastor said. One of them, a pastor's wife identified as Fatemeh Kojouri Tork, remained in Tehran's notorious Evin prison Tuesday, July 13, while her husband, Behrouz Sadegh Khanjani, was kept in isolation in a security prison in the southwestern city of Shiraz,  the Christian leader said.

"We still do not hear from Reverend Behrouz Khanjani..." Iranian Christians have also expressed concerns about reports of other detentions, including last month's capture of Pastor Behnam Irani in the city of Karaj, 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) west of Tehran.

Several believers have allegedly been mistreated. "We have learned that information that [security forces] have been using substances to extract confessions from Christians," the senior pastor said.

Iranian officials have not commented on the cases.

AUTHORITIES CONCERNED

Rights groups have linked the crackdown to concern among authorities about growing churches and the spread of Christianity among Muslims in the country.

Church sources say the number of Christians in Iran has grown from 500 known believers in 1979 to at least 100,000 today.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has reportedly said the government needed to halt the growing movement of house churches across Iran.

Under Iran's strict interpretation of Islam, "apostasy" -- or the formal renunciation of religion-- is punishable by death.

‘Blasphemy Laws’ Used to Jail Elderly Christian in Pakistan

Another case of the Pakistani government relying on Sharia rather than secular law.  In this instance, a Christian has been accused by a Muslim of blasphemy against Mohammed (the pedophile) in order to claim his land.  Accusing Christians of blasphemy is a common way to eliminate Christians whom run afoul of Muslims.  Being 99% Muslim, the police and government rarely, if ever bring chargesd aginst Muslims in Muslium/Christian disputes, even in the most grevious cases of abuse by Muslims.  
 

FROM COMPASSDIRECT.ORG:

‘Blasphemy Laws’ Used to Jail Elderly Christian in Pakistan
  
Muslim vying for same piece of land as Christian accuses him of speaking ill of Muhammad.

FAISALABAD, Pakistan, June 29 (CDN) —

A Muslim vying with a Christian for a parcel of land here has accused the elderly man of “blaspheming” Islam’s prophet Muhammad, which is punishable by death or life imprisonment, according to the Christian Lawyers’ Foundation (CLF).

Jhumray police on June 19 arrested Rehmat Masih of village No. 165/RB Jandawali in Faisalabad district under Section 295-C of Pakistan’s controversial “blasphemy laws,” and he was sent to Faisalabad District Jail on judicial remand by Magistrate Muhammad Sajawal.

Section 295-C states that “whoever by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representation, or by imputation, innuendo, or insinuation, directly or indirectly, defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) shall be punishable with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall be liable to fine.”

Christian sources said Masih, who suffers from arthritis, is 85 years old, though the First Information Report against him lists his age as 73.

The CLF’s Rai Navid Zafar Bhatti told Compass that hard-line Muslim Muhammad Sajjid Hameed filed the charges after learning that he would not be able to secure the Punjab Province land.

“He used the weapon of last resort, the controversial Blasphemy Laws’ Section 295-C, which preponderantly unbalances the scales of justice,” Bhatti said.

CLF President Khalid Gill said local Christian residents led by Masih had applied to the Punjab government to secure it for construction of a Christian residential area, and Hameed also had applied for the same parcel for commercial projects.

Hameed has testified in court that Masih made derogatory remarks about Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, and Khadija, the first wife of the founder of the religion, Bhatti said.

Gill said Masih has testified that he said nothing “humiliating” about Muhammad or Khadija.

“I am not a blasphemer, nor I can think of such a sinister thing, which is against the teachings of Christ,” Masih testified, according to Gill.

A CLF fact-finding team found that in April the frail Masih had argued with Hameed and several other Muslim hardliners – Shahbaz Khalid, Afzaal Bashir, Muhammad Aamer, Akber Ali and Asghar Ali – about the Virgin Mary, said Gill.

“At that time the elderly Masih, who at present is languishing in Faisalabad District Jail and facing discriminatory behavior and apathy of Muslim inmates and jail wardens, did not know that this altercation with Muslim men would lead to imprisonment for him,” Gill said.

Three of Hameed’s friends who backed him during the argument, 25-year-old Aamer, 45-year-old Akber Ali and 40-year-old Asghar Ali, have testified in support of Hameed’s accusation, according to Bhatti.

The CLF fact-finding team, led by Babu William Rose, a local Faisalabad Christian representative, found that Masih was also accused because he was a politically active member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid-e-Azam party (PML-Q), while Hameed supports the PML-Nawaz Sharif (PML-N).

Representatives of the National Commission for Justice and Peace also asserted that Masih’s political views played a role in Hameed having him jailed under Pakistan’s blasphemy statues, saying that Hameed was using the power of the PML-N, which rules Punjab province, to implicate Masih in the case.
Gill and Azher Kaleem of the CLF sternly condemned the incarceration of Masih and said that the blasphemy laws must be repealed at once as they are widely used to take vengeance in personal or land disputes.

Section 295-A of the blasphemy laws prohibits injuring or defiling places of worship and “acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class of citizens.” Section 295-B makes willful desecration of the Quran or a use of its extract in a derogatory manner punishable with life imprisonment.

Masih is the father of seven adult daughters and four grown sons