"I waited patiently for the Lord;
He inclined to me and heard my cry."
~ Psalm 40:1 ESV
Six Kenyan merchants, all of them professed followers of Jesus, were killed in a border town between Kenya and Somalia on March 29th. The perpetrators of the crime then fled the Somalian town of Dhobley and travelled further into the country. It is believed that those responsible for the attack are members of al-Shabaab, a militant Islamic group based in Somalia.
Under the regime of President Daniel Ortega, life for Christians in Nicaragua has become increasingly difficult. Many Catholic priests have been detained, often for being overtly opposed to the abusive actions committed by the country's governing authorities. During the last week of December alone, nine priests were detained.
The following three reports provide up-to-date information received from
ChinaAid regarding the recent court cases of Christian leaders in China.
Xi'an Church of Abundance
In August 2022, three ministers from the Church of Abundance located in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, were detained on allegations of fraud. (See more details on their detentions.) The three church leaders were identified as Lian Changnian, Lian Xuliang and Fu Juan. Though these believers were placed in "residential surveillance at a designated location," their families received no information on their whereabouts for a duration of six months. During that time, the detained Christians endured starvation, deprivation and other forms of torture.
