Two Hundred Christians in Eritrea Arrested as Persecution Increases
Two hundred Christians were arrested and their churches and affiliate humanitarian aid programs were forced to shut down.
Eritrean authorities arrested two hundred Christians earlier this month as persecution against evangelical Christians continues to escalate in the country.
Just days before Oct. 17, two hundred Christians were arrested and their churches and affiliate humanitarian aid programs were forced to shut down in the latest report of legal actions against Christians in a series of crackdowns on Christian weddings and church officials.
“The president of Eritrea, he has basically made the Evangelical church enemy number one of the state and is going about on a ruthless campaign to try to eradicate and shut her down,” said Kevin Turner, the president of Strategic World Impact – a ministry assisting persecuted Christians worldwide.
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In a recent interview with Mission Network News (MNN) Turner explained that the Eritrean government has not responded to world pressure to cease the religious oppression in its country. Instead, the situation has been steadily worsening for Christians.
Turner fears that Eritrea will soon be another self-imposed isolated country.
“Eritrea is alienating itself from the international community, joining fellowship and ranks with groups like North Korea, and Saudi Arabia,” he said, according to MNN.
Although the situation in Eritrea is undesirable, Turner noted that the hardships faced by the Christians in Eritrea provide strength to others of faith.
“They can be such an encouragement to us because they continue to do that in spite of severe penalties, incredible physical degradation that they face because they feel Jesus is worth it,” he said.
Eritrea has been designated by the United States as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, for severe violations of religious freedom. CPCs receive special attention from the Secretary of State who works with the country to improve the nation’s religious freedoms. If conditions do not improve, the United States may choose to take any particular actions against the country including sanctions to pressure the nation to increase religious freedom.
