Church ransacked in eastern Algeria

The Protestant Church of Ouargla in eastern Algeria was vandalized by an unknown number of armed men on the evening of February 1, reports International Christian Concern.

After the assailants broke through the gate, they ransacked the church building. "We heard noises on the terrace, but we could not get out because the threat was real. They could kill us," said Pastor Mourad, who was inside the building with his wife and children.

The Church of Ouargla is the only church in the region and has been recognized by the government since its establishment in 1958. Pastor Mourad has been repeatedly threatened and attacked since being ordained as pastor in 2007.

In the summer of 2009, his wife was beaten and seriously injured by a group of unknown men. Then, in late 2011, rubbish was thrown over the compound walls while an angry mob shouted death threats at Pastor Mourad.

You can help by praying!

• Pray the Lord will protect Pastor Mourad, his family and church members. 
• Pray the believers will take heart and place their hope in Him. 
• Ask the Lord to grow the Church in Algeria, in number and in faithfulness.

Go to the Algeria Country Report for more on the trials believers face in Algeria.

A long bus ride in Algeria

This story was originally published for Kids of Courage, the children’s ministry of The Voice of the Martyrs.

Gerard is a Christian worker in Algeria. In 2006, the government passed a new law that said churches must register with the government. But the authorities did not grant many churches registration, so churches that continued to meet were “illegal.” Then the government began closing down unregistered churches.

“The government is always going to come up with new laws,” said Gerard. “They are not believers, so they cannot understand the hope we have.”

The government gives individual Christians a hard time, too. Two years ago, a student in a secret Bible school was stopped at a checkpoint. When soldiers found Bible study materials in her bag, they arrested her.

Gerard was also bothered by the police. He was riding on a bus when it was stopped by police at a checkpoint. After they searched his bag and found a Bible, they began to curse him. “This is my faith. This is what I believe,” Gerard told a policeman. The policeman spat on him.

Everyone on the bus saw what happened, so they found out that Gerard was a Christian. For the rest of the bus ride, they insulted him. “All of them started to say bad things,” Gerard said. “I hoped that the long ride would finish soon.”

No one on the bus hurt Gerard, but he has been beaten for his faith before. Still, his trust in Christ remains strong. “Even if they arrest or beat me or something, they cannot come into my mind and change my mind,” he said.

For other stories about the persecuted Church to share with your kids or Sunday school class, visit Kids of Courage today!

Authorities order church to close in Algeria

On October 17, Algerian authorities ordered the closure of a church in the country's second largest city because the church did not have a registration certificate, according to VOM-USA.

The 90-member House of Hope church in Oran runs several ministries in the Ain-Turck neighbourhood, including a Bible school, a media studio, a safe house, and a network of evangelists.

When church representatives visited the state office to inquire about necessary documentation, no one could tell them what was required for church registration. After further inquiries, the minister of the interior told church representatives that he did not know who ordered the church to close.

"It looks like an attempt from the authorities to test the church's reaction," said a VOM worker. "In Algeria, nothing is guaranteed, so we trust our Lord and move boldly."

At last report, House of Hope is continuing its services.

Please pray for favour from the authorities as well as wisdom and perseverance for the church's leaders!

For more information on the persecuted Church in Algeria, please visit our Algeria Country Report.

Threatened churches in Algeria remain open

Pray for religious freedom in Algeria!

On May 7, we shared that seven Algerian churches were ordered to close.

At a press conference on June 2, Algeria’s Minister of Interior Dahou Ould Kablia stated the Protestant Church of Béjaia will be “allowed to continue their activities until they receive the necessary authorization,” reported International Christian Concern.

In May, the president of the Protestant Church Association (EPA) was informed that seven Protestant churches in the Béjaia province were ordered to permanently close. The demand is in accordance with a 2006 law known as Ordinance 06-03.

The ordinance requires non-Muslims to obtain permission to meet. The ministries responsible for granting permission have not made the registration process an easy one, and it can often take years for registrations to be approved.

In April 2011, a church in the village of Makouda was given 48 hours to shutdown. The commissioner did not accept the documents the pastor presented proving his affiliation with the EPA. However, that church, too, remains open.

Thankfully, the seven churches in Bejaia ordered to close on May 7 did not shut their doors and continue to meet in the face of opposition.

One church congregant said, “We worship out of conviction. We are not afraid, because we did nothing wrong. We were never forced to choose Jesus, but we did so voluntarily. Whatever the circumstances, we will continue to say: we are here to praise your name Lord.”

You can read the whole article here.

Algerian Christian given 5-year prison sentence for blasphemy

Siagh Krimo and family

On May 7, we shared that two Algerian Christians were scheduled to appear in court on charges of proselytizing and blasphemy. On May 25, one of those men was sentenced to five years imprisonment, reported International Christian Concern.

The verdict came days after authorities forced the permanent closure of seven Protestant churches in Algeria’s Bejaia province.

Siagh Krimo was charged by the Criminal Court of the Djamel District in Oran, who based their decision on Article 144 bis 2 of the Penal Code which criminalizes acts that “insult the prophet and any of the messengers of God, or denigrate the creed and precepts of Islam, whether by writing, drawing, declaration, or any other means.”

Krimo has 10 days to appeal the sentence.

Krimo, who is married with a 9-month-old child, was arrested on April 14, along Sofiane, after sharing his Christian faith with a neighbour. Sofiane was released soon after the arrest, while Krimo was detained for three days. Krimo was known to hold weekly prayer services at his home, which Algerian Christians suspect were being closely monitored by the police.

Krimo was sentenced in spite of the prosecutor’s inability to produce the neighbour who accused Krimo of proselytizing and making defamatory statements against Mohammad.

Aidan Clay, ICC Regional Manager for the Middle East, said, “Algerian Christians have been under attack in recent weeks as laws have been increasingly enforced to discriminate against them. Earlier this week, seven churches in Bejaia were ordered to close. Now, an Algerian Christian is on the verge of being unjustly imprisoned for accusations of criticizing Islam. While Algeria professes that it upholds religious freedom, it also embraces a blasphemy law that, by its very nature, can be used to prosecute anyone who does not adhere to the religion of Islam. We urge Algeria to acquit Siagh of all charges and repeal Article 144 bis 2 of the Penal Code.”

What You Can Do

1. Pray for Siagh Krimo. Pray he would remain strong in Jesus while he faces time behind bars. Pray he will be a witness to those around him in prison. Pray for Algerian authorities.
2. Write to the Algerian embassy in Canada to express your concern.

His Excellency Smail Benamara
Ambassador
Embassy of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
500 Wilbrod Street
Ottawa, ON K1N 6N2
Canada

Seven Algerian churches ordered to close

You can find out more about the persecuted Church in Algeria along with further information on the ordinance from 2006 in our June newsletter. Subscribe here.

On May 22, the Governor of Bejaia informed the President of the Protestant Church of Algeria (EPA) that the seven churches in that province must close down because they do not comply with an ordinance from 2006, reported Middle East Concern.
The ordinance regulates the exercise of religions other than Islam.

The EPA churches cannot currently comply with these regulations because the Ministries of Interior and Religious Affairs have delayed responding to the EPA's application for registration. Without legal registration, the EPA cannot apply to register their churches as places of worship.

You can help by praying!

Please pray the order to close down the churches will be withdrawn and that this practice will not spread to other parts of the country. Pray the 2006 law will be repealed or the necessary procedures implemented to allow the EPA to register. Pray, too, that all officials involved will love mercy, act justly, learn about Jesus and choose to follow Him.

Algerian Christians arrested for proselytizing and blasphemy

Two Algerian Christian men are scheduled to appear in court on charges of proselytizing and blasphemy, reported International Christian Concern.

Sofiane and Krimo were arrested in Oran on April 14 after sharing their Christian faith with their neighbours. Sofiane was released a day after their arrest, while Krimo was imprisoned for three days.

After the arrest, Algerian police searched Krimo's home for Bibles and other Christian material. Krimo was known to hold weekly prayer services at his home, which local Christians suspect were being closely monitored by the police.

A court hearing, initially scheduled for April 27, was postponed to a later date.

Algerian Christians are fearful that a law introduced in 2006—requiring religious services to obtain a government permit to worship—will be applied, which may result in a five-year imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 Algerian dinars ($1,337 CAD). Church leadership has expressed frustration over the government's negligence to lay out a set procedure to register a church or to approve a permit quickly.

Please pray for a favourable outcome for Sofiane and Krimo at the next court hearing. Pray the Lord will use this case and their testimony to encourage the faith of other believers in Algeria. Pray those in authority will recognize the lack of religious freedoms in the country and make changes accordingly.

Algerian Christians sentenced for setting up "illegal" place of worship

Freedom of religion in Algeria is
dwindling since legal changes in 2006,
and persecution has been intensifying
since 2008.

On December 12, four Christians were given suspended prison sentences for opening a place of worship in the eastern region of Kabylia, Algeria, without a proper license issued by authorities.

The Christians—a Protestant clergyman and three of his parishioners—were convicted on the basis of a controversial 2006 law that requires that anyone who wants to set up a place of worship, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, must obtain a permit indicating the name of the place of worship as well as that of the pastor. Some believe this law violates Algeria's constitution, and this is first time it has been enforced in the nation.

Three of the men—Abdenour Raid, Nacer Mokrani and Idir Haoudj—received two-month prison sentences. The fourth man, Pastor Mahmoud Yahou, was sentenced to three months in jail and fined the equivalent of $135 CAN for illegally sheltering a foreigner.

Although the suspended sentences mean the four Christians will not serve prison time, Yahou told Compass Direct News that he and the three other men plan to appeal the verdict because the outcome of their case could affect all Protestant churches of the country, none of which have official permission to operate.

You can read the full report here.

Pray for endurance of faith for these four believers as they face opposition. Pray that they will look to God, knowing that their lives and ministries are in His hands. Pray that the ministry of churches in Algeria will continue and that the gospel will be preached throughout the nation.