Middle East - Africa News
Church of the Holy Sepulchre reopens with restrictions
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is reopening this weekend, after being closed in late March due to... Read more
More than 600 Nigerian Christians killed in 2020, new report says
Christians in Nigeria faced escalating persecution and a mounting death toll in the first four months of 2020, a new report... Read more
Iraq’s suffering will ‘rise sharply’ in wake of coronavirus, priest says
The number of people in need of help with basic necessities in Iraq, already in the millions, is expected to... Read more
In Chad, Jesuit Refugee Service teachers aim to keep school going amid pandemic lockdown
As schools in Chad remain closed due to coronavirus pandemic restrictions, teachers from the Jesuit Refugee Service are conveying safety... Read more
What is the Higher Committee of Human Fraternity?
This week’s interreligious day of prayer is the first major worldwide initiative of a committee created by the United Arab... Read more
Kenyan bishop: Poor could be exploited in COVID vaccine trials
A Kenyan bishop said testing potential coronavirus vaccines on his countrymen could disrespect human dignity, and amount to a breach... Read more
Locusts threaten East African food crisis, members of Congress call for aid
Members of Congress are calling on the president to take early action to fight swarms of locusts in East Africa,... Read more
This Kenyan nun runs a program for girls with disabilities
At a one-room house outside Nairobi, a 23-year-old girl with disabilities claps her hands and throws herself at Sr. Rose... Read more
Murdered Nigerian seminarian was killed for announcing gospel, killer says
A man claiming to have killed the murdered Nigerian seminarian Michael Nnadi has given an interview in which he says... Read more
Turkey disputes US religious freedom commission's assessment of Turkey
The Turkish foreign ministry on Wednesday rejected Turkey's inclusion in a report by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom,... Read more
Syria’s Hidden Victims - Mary Sayegh
The Syrian civil war has led to one of the largest refugee crises of modern times, and presented unique problems... Read more
Togo bishops decry arrest of opposition leader
The bishops of Togo called for peace and respect for the rights of citizens after the violent arrest of an... Read more
Pandemic may revive Islamic State and hurt Iraq’s minorities, say NGOs
For Iraqi Christian and Yazidi communities still recovering from the trauma and destruction wreaked by the Islamic State, the coronavirus... Read more
Tabernacle desecrated during South African cathedral robbery
The cathedral of the Archdiocese of Cape Town, South Africa, was vandalized on Saturday and the tabernacle desecrated. Read more
Priest arrested in Kenya for spreading coronavirus
A Catholic priest in Kenya has been charged with “negligently spreading an infectious disease” after authorities allege he did not comply... Read more
Jerusalem archbishop blesses city with True Cross relic
Unable to lead the traditional Palm Sunday procession through Jerusalem, Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa blessed the city with a relic of the... Read more
African cardinal tests positive for coronavirus as pandemic spreads across the continent
Cardinal Philippe Ouédraogo of Burkina Faso has tested positive for the coronavirus, his archdiocese announced Tuesday. He is the second... Read more
Church of the Holy Sepulchre closed indefinitely
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre will remain closed until further notice. It is the first time in nearly 700 years... Read more
Aid workers kidnapped in Iraq released
Four men working in Iraq for the French humanitarian organization SOS Chrétiens d'Orient who went missing in Baghdad in January... Read more
First bishop known to die of coronavirus was missionary in Ethiopia
The Italian bishop of a missionary region of Ethiopia is the first Catholic bishop known to have died of the... Read more
