Ten Christian families were expelled from their village in Syria by armed militants as jihadists hijack the anti-government uprising and wreak havoc across the country.

The group seized control of Qastal al-Burg village, which is around 30 miles northwest of Hama, on 10 May.

Swedish mosques advise wives: “don't report abusive husbands”
Britain's “Islamophobia” witch-hunt challenged after Rochdale sex ring case
UK: Marriage conference banned because of diversity fears
UK: Newcastle United planning prayer room for Muslim players

Christians in Egypt fear an Islamist victory in the impending presidential elections as the Muslim Brotherhood candidate vows to implement sharia and polls show support for this agenda.

The Brotherhood, which has previously presented itself as a moderate Islamist party, is now taking a more overtly Islamic stance.

Christians in Pakistan have been threatened and abused while trying to save their community’s graveyard from being turned into farmland in a dubious takeover bid.

Retired army colonel Farrukh Alam has claimed ownership of the 150-acre plot in Bhondary Wala village in the Narang Mandi area...

The authorities have sealed off 17 Christian places of worship in a semi-autonomous Indonesian province following a protest from hard line Islamist groups, who oppose the buildings.

The undung-undungs, which are small buildings not classified as churches, in the Aceh Singkil district of Aceh province were closed...

Secret police raided a Christian gathering in a home in Uzbekistan claiming to be searching for a bomb.

Eight police and National Security Service officers raided the home of Natalya Kim in Yukori-Chirchik on 27 February. While searching for the alleged bomb, police...

Two children who were bathing in a river were shot dead by the Burmese military, as they continue their offensive against a predominantly Christian ethnic group.

A five-year-old and a seven-year-old were gunned down on 5 May after being startled by a loud bomb blast.

Sudan and South Sudan last week signed up to a roadmap intended to avert an all-out war between them, but the agreement looks increasingly fragile as attacks continue.

Hopes of a ceasefire, after weeks of border clashes, were raised when the two countries endorsed the African Union’s (AU) seven-point plan on 3 May....

UK: Faith references “inappropriate” at work, judge tells Christian doctor;
Canada: Christian student suspended over Jesus T-shirt;
Australian appeal court rules Muslim man should face jury after bias claim

Kuwait’s Islamist-dominated parliament has passed a bill that would make insulting key Islamic figures and the Quran punishable by death.

The amendment, intended to strengthen the country’s existing blasphemy legislation, gained overwhelming support in the second – and final – vote on 3 May.

Christians in Northern Nigeria are refusing to let the threat of attack keep them away from Sunday services as security is stepped up after a spate of deadly bombings.

Going to church on a Sunday has become a highly dangerous activity for Nigerian Christians, who are being targeted by suspected Boko Haram militants.

Reports that the names of 20,000 Christians have been deleted from the electoral roll in an Indian state are being investigated amid concerns that the community is being deliberately disenfranchised.

An inter-denominational Christian forum in Madhya Pradesh, Isai Mahasangh, has formed a committee to examine the matter...

The Muslim mayor who illegally sealed off GKI Yasmin Church in Indonesia has agreed it can reopen – if a mosque is built next door.

Presidential advisors brokered the “deal” following a month-long negotiation between the church and the Bogor authorities, which ended on 2 May.

Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC) has lifted a ban on religious-based political parties after objections from Islamists, just one week after introducing the surprise measure.

The NTC issued a new law on 25 April that banned political parties based on religion, tribe or ethnicity.

The closing of an investigation into the massacre of Christians during a protest in Egypt has been slammed as a “farce” by a woman whose fiancé was crushed under a military vehicle.

A panel of judges had been appointed by the minister of justice to investigate the incident, which happened on 9 October 2011...

UK: Council removes “God” from opening prayers
UK: London’s largest uni to ban alcohol to accommodate Muslim students
UK: Forced marriage campaign targets mosques in Scotland

A Muslim lawyer has called for the introduction of sharia courts in Russia, threatening a “bloodbath” if the demand is opposed.

Chechen Dagir Khasavov, the founder of an organisation that defends the rights of Muslims, said in an interview broadcast on 24 April...

At least one person was killed and 15 injured in a grenade attack on a Kenyan church by an infiltrator in the congregation.

The incident at God’s House of Miracle Church in the capital, Nairobi, happened during a service on Sunday (29 April).

Around 300 Christians killed in one diocese; 27 dead in church attacks

Around 300 Christians have been killed in one diocese alone, and 27 people died in attacks on three church services as anti-Christian violence in Nigeria continues unabated.   

A church in Azerbaijan has become the first religious community to be liquidated by a court since the country’s harsh new religion law came into force in 2009.

Greater Grace Protestant Church in the capital, Baku, was stripped of its registration at a 15-minute hearing on 25 April. The decision, which was made in the absence of any church representatives, makes any activity by the church illegal and subject to punishment.

A Christian convert from Islam has been sentenced to six years in prison, while another believer has been unexpectedly set free after six months behind bars in Iran.

Farshid Fathi was arrested by the security forces in Tehran on 26 December 2010 as part of a major crackdown on the country’s house church movement in which dozens of Christians were arrested.

A group of Laotian Christians are standing up for religious freedom in the country by resisting the closure of their church building, which was among four confiscated by the authorities in one district.

On 5 April, officials ordered the confiscation and closure of the church in Khamnonsung village, Saybuli district, Savannakhet province.

The Jordanian parliament has voted to ban the establishment of any political party on a “religious basis” in a move that would block the Muslim Brotherhood from running in upcoming elections.

A narrow majority – 46 out of 83 – in the Lower House voted on 16 April to add the clause to the country’s draft political parties law.

UK: MPs narrowly reject bill on compulsory labelling of halal and kosher meat;
UK: Paganism included in religious education syllabus for Cornish schools;
UK: Islamic leader calls on Welsh Muslims to support fight for sharia abroad

This year, Barnabas Fund’s Supporters’ Days will focus on the Proclaim Freedom campaign, which seeks to raise the profile of our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world. This is a critical time for the suffering Church, and we invite you to stand with us as we call upon governments to engage with issues of anti-Christian persecution.

A church and Bible school in Sudan have been torched by an Islamist mob as the country moves closer to an all-out war with the mainly Christian South Sudan.

The compound, in the Al-Jiraif district of Khartoum, was set ablaze on Saturday night (21 April).

The May-June version of "Barnabas Prayer" for you to download.

The May - June version of "Barnabas Aid" for you to download.

Another Indonesian church whose building has been unlawfully sealed off by the authorities was met with violent opposition from Islamists as it attempted to stage an outdoor service.

The Filadelfia congregation of the Batak Christian Protestant Church (HKBP) in Bekasi has been unable to use the building on the land it bought in 2007.