Serious Persecution in Northern Sudan
Believers in northern Sudan are in serious danger. Reports of persecution are coming from South Kurdufan, a state just above the border with South Sudan.
Christians among the Nuba people have been persecuted for years. Almost two decades ago, Muslim clerics issued a religious opinion saying that the government could legitimately kill the Nuba because they were “apostates” and “infidels” “who stand as a bulwark against the spread of Islam.” In the 1990s, approximately half of the Nuba population was wiped out. Now, some estimate that 70,000-90,000 people could die in the coming months if the situation does not improve.
Bombing raids, election fraud, and murder are just some of the tactics used against South Kurdufan by the Islamic government of Sudan, which has ties to terrorist organizations. According to one witness, “If you are affiliated in anyway with the Church or any other stripe of religion that is different from their brand of Islam, you’re dead.” Because of the bombing, the seasonal planting of crops has ceased, and starvation is likely to ensue. In the capital city government forces have searched house to house, arresting or killing Christians and other targets. All church members, and especially pastors, are considered to be enemies. One pastor said that he knows he is on a governmental hit list—if they find him, they will kill him.
Please pray for Christians in northern Sudan!
Also, see Smyrna's 8/23/11 daily prayer request, about a believer arrested and tortured in northern Sudan
News sources: Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin, Religious Liberty Monitoring, Persecution Project Foundation, Washington Times Communities
