The lawyers representing Khartoum Bahri Evangelical Church in Sudan is appealing a court decision to close the church and seize their property.
On February 18th, police arrived at the church with an order from a local court demanding the church be locked and seized. The church’s lawyers say the order not specifically state what land or property was subject to seizure.
“In November 2014, congregants held a protest vigil in order to prevent NISS agents from gaining access to the land and illegally destroying and confiscating the property. In December 2014 the church was partially destroyed and 37 congregants arrested.”
The court is claiming the land was sold to a Muslim businessman by a church committee. It was later discovered that the government formed a committee they said was a committee of the church and sold the land. A lower court ruled in favor of the church that the committee was not associated with the church but a higher Muslim court said the Christians had to leave.
“The court order will effectively facilitate the illegal closure of yet another church at a time when the government has stated that the construction of new churches will no longer be permitted. We call upon the international community, and in particular the African Union, to hold Sudan to its obligations to protect the right to freedom of religion or belief and to guarantee the profession and free practice of religion as outlined in international statutes to which the nation is party,” Christian Solidary Worldwide said in a statement.
Meriam Ibrahim, the woman who was initially sentenced to death in Sudan for being a Christian, is going to be honored at the National Religious Broadcasters convention for showing “what it means to not be ashamed of Christ.”
“Meriam Ibrahim is a modern-day example of what it means to not be ashamed of Christ,” said NRB President and CEO Jerry A. Johnson. “We are honored to welcome her to NRB15 as we rejoice with her over God’s protective care in her life.”
The Islamic government of Sudan sentenced Ibrahim to 100 lashes and then death for “apostasy and adultery” because she married an American Christian. She was tortured during her time in prison and was forced to give birth to her second child while her legs were chained to a wall.
Ibrahim was told if she renounced Christ she would be freed.
She will be given the NRB President’s Award at the Hope for the Heart women’s breakfast on February 25th.
Police and security personnel have arrested the leaders of a Sudanese Christian church that refused to surrender their property and possessions to the government.
Authorities stormed the compound of the Khartoum Bahri Evangelical Church on Sunday and arrested church leaders who were leading a prayer vigil on the remains of a home destroyed the previous week by the government.
Rev. Daud Fadul, elder Fathi Hakim, elder Nouh Manzoul, deacon Iman Hamid and Tilal Mafishi were taken to the Khartoum North Police Station after they refused to stop praying and worshipping on the site.
The members of the church have been maintaining a round the clock vigil to keep the government from destroying the rest of the church’s property.
A Muslim businessman went to the government and told them that he owned the land, so the government has sided with him to remove the Christians from the land and demolish the church.
The government has forcibly removed Christians from their homes and land after the formation of the mostly Christian South Sudan in July 2011. They claim that any Christian land was owned by people who are now in South Sudan.
Christians in North Khartoum, Sudan are fighting to stop the government from completely tearing down their church and homes of Christians.
Government security forces accompanied a bulldozer that knocked down a wall of the Khartoum Bahri Evangelical Church and also some homes that belonged to Christians. The Christians, in turn, formed a human barrier to stop the further demolition attempts by the government.
One of the homes destroyed belonged to the Nile Theological College and a Chrsitian doctor who had rented the home lost all his belongings.
The government claimed they had the right to appoint leaders for the church despite the fact the church members did not want them.
“The government recently installed some committee to the running of the church, and these are the same people who want to sell the church for business purposes,” pastor Daud Fadul told Morning Star News.
Church members say the move is part of a government movement to take all land from Christians.
Meriam Ibrahim’s long journey to freedom has finally ended.
Ibrahim, her husband Daniel Wani and their children arrived in New Hampshire Thursday. The family arrived at the airport in Manchester to a huge, cheering crowd consisting of many of the Sudanese-American population of the city.
The family is going to be living in Wani’s home in the city near his brother and family.
The members of Sudanese Evangelical Covenant Church held signs saying “God Bless You” and cheering the family all the way to a waiting car. The church has been preparing Wani’s home for the family and providing all the necessary items for the family to start a new life.
Rev. Joel Kruggel, pastor of Bethany Covenant Church which sponsors the Sudanese church, says he wants the family to “absorb the fact that they are safe in New Hampshire, where life can be closer to normal.”
Meriam Ibrahim, the Sudanese Christian woman who had been sentenced to death for not renouncing her faith in front of a Sudanese court, is free.
Italian vice-minister for foreign affairs Lapo Pistelli posted a picture of himself with Ibrahim and her family on Facebook with a message that read “with Meriam, Maya, Martin and Daniel, a few minutes from Rome. Mission accomplished.
The family will meet with the Pope before flying to the United States to start a new life.
The move was a surprise to everyone associated with the case and there have been no details released yet regarding how Italy was able to get Ibrahim and her family out of the country. Unconfirmed reports say the Italian government and the Vatican entered negotiations two weeks ago to free the family.
Ibrahim’s attorney Mohaned Mostafa told Reuters not only did he not know the she was leaving the country, but that the charges the government was using to keep her from leaving have not been dismissed.
Her family had also been keeping her in the country by suing to have a court declare her a Muslim against her wishes but that suit was dropped earlier this week.
The family of Meriam Ibrahim, who had brought a lawsuit in an attempt to have her declared a Muslim by Sudanese courts, announced they have dropped their lawsuit.
The development could allow the persecuted Christian woman to finally leave the country with her husband and two children for the United States.
Attorney Abdel Rahman Malek would not give a reason that the family was dropping the suit.
The Sudanese government is still holding charges over Ibrahim’s head that she tried to leave the country on false travel documents; however, the family’s attorney says he has evidence to show that the papers are legal under international law.
A New York City area church said this week they would be willing to provide housing, food and other necessities to Ibrahim and her family so they could begin a new life in the United States.
The Sudanese government has not responded to multiple requests from American groups and political leaders to release the family.
A New York City church is offering to pay for the flights to have Meriam Ibrahim and her family leave Sudan along with providing them food and shelter.
Pastor William Devlin of Manhattan Bible Church traveled to Sudan and met with the Foreign Minister. The pastor says that he asked the Minister to intervene to allow the family to leave the country with him.
“The Devlin family has offered to bring this family back to the USA from Khartoum and have them live with us. I have been interviewed by the U.S. State Department in Washington D.C. and I have also met for three hours with the U.S. Ambassador to Sudan here in Khartoum – and his senior staff,” Devlin said in an email to The Christian Post on Sunday. “I, along with another brother in the Lord, were able to go to the Safe House where this persecuted family is currently living in Khartoum and minister to them for over an hour.”
The family is reportedly in good health despite the Sudanese government’s continued actions in keeping Ibrahim from leaving the country. The family is still waiting for the results of an ultrasound to see if newborn Maya will be able to walk after complications with her birth.
Persecuted Christian Meriam Ibrahim has asked the world to pray for her daughter who will be undergoing an ultrasound to see if the injury from her birth will cause permanent disability.
Doctors are telling Ibrahim that it’s possible the injuries suffered at birth are not as severe as initially feared and that it’s possible the child will be able to walk on her own. Ibrahim was forced to give birth with her legs tied together with chains because the prison guards would not release her for the birth.
Ibrahim and her family have been taking refuge in the U.S. embassy after being released from prison on charges related to her Christian faith. The family has been hoping to leave the country but the Sudanese government continues to refuse to allow the family passage out of the nation.
The family has been especially sensitive to the possibility of the child being confined to a wheelchair for life because her father, Daniel Wani, is wheelchair bound because of multiple sclerosis.
Congregants of the Church of Christ in the Thiba Al Hamyida area of Khartoum stood by helplessly as Sudanese government officials destroyed their church building.
A church member told CNN that the government came in during Sunday mass and said they would be destroying the building. About 70 security personnel, some armed with guns and tear gas, used a bulldozer to destroy the building.
“They wanted to beat us or throw tear gas on us,” the church member said.
Reverend Kwa Shamal told the Morning Star News that government officials made it clear they were to not ask questions about why they were destroying the church. The government also gave no compensation to the church for the destruction of their building.
The pastor said the church’s congregation will meet in a tent this Sunday.
