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Sudan

• Continued Prayers for Religious Freedom

  Daniel and Meriam Photo: Gabriel Wani / Facebook

  Meriam Ibrahim, the courageous woman who refused to deny her Christian faith -- even at the risk of execution -- finally arrived in the United States with her family on July 31st. It was reported in one of VOMC's previous prayer alerts that Meriam, her husband Daniel, and their two children had left Sudan for Italy on July 24th after negotiations had been made between the two countries. The family has now settled in New Hampshire, where extended family members are willing to assist them in the rebuilding of their lives. (For more information on Meriam and her family, you can read this past prayer alert.)

• Meriam Ibrahim Leaves Homeland with her Family

  Daniel and Meriam Photo: Gabriel Wani / Facebook

  Meriam Ibrahim, the 27-year-old Christian woman who was sentenced to death for apostasy this past May, has finally been permitted to leave the country along with her family. Since this time, Meriam was detained in prison where she gave birth to her second child, a daughter. She was then released from jail on June 23rd, only to be detained the following day at the airport.

• Authorities Destroy Another Church Building

  The demolished church Photo: Morning Star News

  Authorities destroyed a church building in Thiba Al Hamyida, North Khartoum, on June 30th. The previous day, officials interrupted the congregation's Sunday service and announced the planned demolition.

• Young Mother Released on Bail, Facing New Charges

  Daniel and Meriam Photo: Gabriel Wani / Facebook

  After being apprehended by authorities the day after her acquittal and release from prison, Meriam Ibrahim and her family remain in Sudan and now face new charges.

  Meriam, 27, was sentenced in May with both apostasy and adultery, as government officials didn't consider her marriage to a Christian man valid. Although she was released from prison on June 23rd, she was detained the next day along with her husband, Daniel, and their two young children at the airport in Khartoum. The couple has been charged with forgery and provision of false information for using travel documents issued by the Embassy of South Sudan. (For more information on these new charges, please visit this page.)

• Meriam Ibrahim Detained Again After Release

  Daniel and Meriam Photo: Gabriel Wani / Facebook

  A Christian wife and mother was released from prison on June 23rd, only to be apprehended along with her family the next day at the Khartoum airport.

  Meriam Ibrahim, 27, was sentenced in May of this year with apostasy -- a crime punishable by hanging -- and adultery, as government officials didn't consider her marriage to a Christian man valid. Eight months pregnant at the time, she was confined to a prison cell along with her 20-month-old son. At the end of May, Meriam gave birth to a daughter while shackled to the prison floor. (For more information on these charges and her imprisonment, please visit our website.)

• Woman Sentenced to Death Gives Birth to Baby Girl

  Meriam Yahia Ibrahim, a woman sentenced to death for apostasy, gave birth to a baby girl on May 27th at the prison where she is being detained. Please join us in praising God that this mother and newborn baby are doing well, while also beseeching Him to open the doors for this young woman's release from prison. (For more information on this case, visit our website.)

• Pregnant Woman Sentenced to Death for 'Apostasy'

  Daniel & Meriam on their wedding day. Photo: Gabriel Wani / Facebook

  A 27-year-old pregnant woman has been charged with apostasy, a crime punishable by hanging, after refusing to recant her Christian faith. Meriam Yahia Ibrahim, a doctor, was also sentenced to 100 lashes for adultery, as her marriage to a Christian man is not considered valid. Under Sudanese law, Muslim women may only marry Muslim men.

• Helping Christians in the Midst of Violence

  VOMC purchased a motorcycle for our partners in South Sudan Photo: GRN Connect

  In the midst of ethnic and political tensions, our Christian family in Sudan and South Sudan is facing great risk and opposition. This area of the world is also coping with such issues as ongoing internal conflict, poverty, hunger and natural disasters.

• Top leaders seek an end to South Sudan violence
  Violence is escalating in South Sudan with about 1,000 people killed according to U.N. figures.
   
  What initially began as an attempted coup has quickly become internal warfare between different tribes.
   
  VOM Canada's Greg Musselman told the Mission Network News this violence could turn into a new civil war with profound effects on the church.
   
  Here are some quotes from the full article:

  Voice of the Martyrs Canada spokesman Greg Musselman says ethnic conflict in South Sudan is a constant problem. But this latest outbreak of violence could launch a new civil war.

   

  “It’s an absolute mess, and we have been working in South Sudan for a number of years,” he states.

• Update: Potential Mass Genocide Threatens Christians

  President General Omar al-Bashir

  The threat of genocide looms in Sudan as Christian and non-Arab communities in three regions have been targeted by President General Omar al-Bashir, a notorious leader well known for the systematic slaughter of those who oppose Islamisation.

  When the mainly Christian south seceded from the predominantly Islamic north in 2011, the government of Sudan began to persecute "southerners" (those who are politically and culturally aligned with the south) living in the north, stripping them of their citizenship and denying them rights (for more, click here).

  The attempts by the Khartoum government to drive out the 'infidels' or 'blacks' (as it refers to them) from the oil-rich areas of Abyei and South Kordofan, in which tens of thousands were killed in 2011, appear to be continuing. Recent aerial bombardments have completely demolished homes and farms (including crops) in these predominantly Christian areas. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced, acute malnutrition and famine have become widespread, and access to humanitarian aid has been denied.

  Please pray that these victims of injustice and cruelty will be sustained with supernatural strength and peace, as well as the miraculous provision of food and medical aid. Also pray that the government will cease in its systematic persecution. During these very troubling times, may the Sudanese believers remain faithful and demonstrate Christ to the world through their love and forgiveness.

  For more information on persecution in Sudan, visit the Sudan Country Report.