PHILIPPINES – Terrorists desecrate Eucharist and destroy Catholic chapel Members of a terrorist group destroyed a Catholic chapel during a nine-hour long attack on the town of Malagakit in southern Philippines. The militants used hammers to destroy religious icons and vital fixtures. They also desecrated consecrated hosts. The 21 June attack was reportedly carried...
SYRIA – Six months of tense peace in Aleppo At the end of December 2016 the forces allied to President Bashar al Assad took definitive control of the city of Aleppo. Just six months have passed since the bombings ceased in this great northern city of Syria, the largest city in the country and...
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Mosque renamed “Mary, mother of Jesus” One of the mosques in Abu Dhabi recently changed its name to “Mary, mother of Jesus” at the request of the Crown Prince, Sheikh Mohammad Ben Zayed Al Nayan – a strong signal for inter-religious dialogue. The Emirate Sheikh asked that one of the...
MEXICO – Another priest killed as violence soars Another Catholic priest has been found stabbed to death in Mexico, now officially considered the most dangerous country in the world to be a priest. Father Luis Lopez Villa, parish priest of San Isidro Labrador in the city of Los Reyes La Paz in Mexico State, was...
Night of Witness highlights the importance of religious freedom The plight of Christians persecuted for their faith was the focus of prayer, song and reflection at the Night of Witness held in Malta, organised by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) Malta. People filled the chapel of the Good Shepherd convent in Balzan on...
CHINA – Bishop forcibly removed from diocese still missing The Director of the Holy See Press Office, Greg Burke, has issued a statement about Chinese Bishop Shao, who has not been returned since being forcibly removed from his diocese by the Chinese state on 18 May. “The Holy See is observing with grave concern the...
ALGERIA – Church demolished to build a mosque and a Koranic school On 9 June the Algerian state ordered the demolition by bulldozers of an ancient Catholic church located in the center of the city of Sidi Mousa, 25 km from Algiers. The Algerian authorities have justified this anti-Christian act of demolition saying that the...
NIGERIA – Priest kidnapped by Fulani describes his ordeal Fr. Sam Okwuidegbe, a Nigerian Jesuit priest and director of a local spirituality center, was looking forward to a quiet retreat weekend last April Before he set off, his new provincial, Fr. Chuks Afiawari, joked “Make sure where you are going they don’t kidnap you.”...
SYRIA – Christians are returning to Aleppo Franciscan Father Ibrahim Alsabagh says that 15 families of the Latin rite Catholic community have already returned to the Syrian city of Aleppo and that many others are hoping to return, reports Josue Villalón. During a recent visit to the war-torn and widely devastated city of Aleppo in Syria,...
