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Persecution News - Eritrea

Eritrea Profile

Total Area:
121,320 sq. km

Population:
5,028,475 (July 2008 est.)

Ethnicity:
Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, Other 3%

Language:
Afar, Amharic, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages

Religion:
Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant

Government Type: Transitional Government
Note: Following a referendum on independence in April 1993, a National Assembly was formed, composed entirely of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ. Parliamentary elections had been scheduled to take place in December 2001, but were postponed indefinitely. Currently the sole legal party is the PFDJ.

Capital:
Asmara (Asmera)

Population Below Poverty Line:
50% (2004 est.)

Country Reports

Update: Conditions poor for pastor under house arrest

November 18, 2009

Believers from the Asmara Full Gospel church

In mid-October, Pastor Tewelde Hailom was arrested and imprisoned along with nine other believers when security forces raided his home (for more information, click here). The pastor, who suffers from an ulcer, was later placed under house arrest. His sister, who had been allowed to take care of him in his home, was recently ordered to leave and his stomach condition is reportedly aggravated by the lack of sufficient food.

Two men arrested during the raid on Pastor Hailom's house, Samuiel Oqbagzi and Gebreberhane Tesfamichel, have been moved to a police station notorious for its strenuous conditions. Furthermore, on November 7, another Full Gospel Church pastor was arrested and imprisoned by Eritrean security forces. (Source: Open Doors)

Ask the Lord to heal and sustain Pastor Hailom as he suffers for his faith. Pray for the release of the recently imprisoned pastor and other Christians detained in Eritrea.

Click here to learn more about the intense persecution of believers in Eritrea.