CAMEROON – Emergency aid for victims of Boko Haram suicide attack The diocese of Maroua-Mokolo is situated in the north of Cameroon on the frontier region with Nigeria. Again and again it has suffered from attacks by the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram. It is of course true that the armed, military-style attacks by the...
PAKISTAN – Churches ordered to enhance security measures against terrorist attacks Again and again horrific terrorist attacks are taking place in Pakistan. Christians are not the only victims of the terrorists, but Christian churches and other institutions are particularly at risk. One of the places that has suffered most in this respect has been the...
Eastern Aleppo is ‘one giant graveyard’ says UN humanitarian chief Last week, as government forces stormed into eastern Aleppo 25,000 people had been forced from their homes, more than half of them children. Video footage showed the bodies of dead children being carried off the streets as what is left of the rebel enclave...
Despite heavy bombing, Aleppo children gather for Skype conference with EU politicians The fighting in Aleppo over the last few days has been particularly fierce. In both East and West, quarter by quarter, street by street intense bombing coupled with small arms fire has marked the ebb and flow of war between rebel and...
PHILIPPINES – “We are baptised but not evangelised” – interview with Reinhard Backes Post-trip interview with Head of Section Reinhard Backes by Maria Lozano – Trip to the Philippines 20th October to 1st November What was your general impression of the country? This is a wonderful country, very young and dynamic. According to official...
Chinese priests wary of new agreement between Vatican and China Closer ties between the Vatican and Beijing authorities are viewed with skepticism by many Chinese Catholic priests who, for the past 60 years, have been split between those who remain loyal to the Pope and others who are under the control of the Chinese...
CHINA – Two new bishops ordained with Vatican approval After more than 60 years of estrangement, secret talks between the Vatican and Chinese authorities offer new hope. Vatican and Chinese officials met at least four times since January this year, including in Rome, to try and resolve the delicate issue of the appointment of bishops....
ACN provides electricity for a Catholic care home for the elderly The diocese of Badulla lies in one of the poorest and most neglected regions on the island of Sri Lanka. Catholics represent only a tiny minority here. Most of the people live and work on the tea plantations and are desperately poor. Hence...
Nepal – Holy Cross Sisters mission for poor remote villages is thriving It is almost 10 years now since the sisters of the congregation of the Daughters of the Holy Cross first began their apostolate in East Nepal. They are helping to give schooling to children from the poorest families, and at the same time...
PAKISTAN – Muslim extremists sentenced to death for burning Christians alive An anti-terror court in Pakistan has sentenced to death Muslim extremists convicted of killing a Christian couple by burning them alive. Shahzad Masih and his wife Shama Bibi who was five months pregnant were killed after being accused of blasphemy for burning pages of the...
