Plight of Iraqi Christians: Bishops Highlight Harsh Situation of Refugees from ISIS

January 12, 2016 — ICC Note: More than 18 months have passed since the attack of ISIS jihadists in Iraq sent hundreds of thousands of fleeing for their lives. As they fight to survive...

The Death Knell of Iraq’s Christian Community

January 11, 2016 — ICC Note: Iraq's Christian community is fighting for its survival. The fight is taking place not so much on the front lines of the battle where coalition forces are bombing...

Syrian Christian Perspectives on the War

January 11, 2016 — ICC Note: Since the conflict in Syria started in March 2011, more than 40 percent of Syria's Christian population has fled. Nearly all of them have faced violence of some...

Christians in the Middle East Have Been ‘Abandoned’

January 9, 2016 — ICC Note: The Christian communities of the Middle East have found themselves in a situation where their very existence in the lands that have been their homes for nearly two...

Egypt’s Sisi Attends Coptic Christmas Mass for Second Straight Year

January 8, 2016 — ICC Note: President Sisi visited the Christmas celebration at the Saint Mark's Cathedral in Cairo again this year. His visit carries much symbolic weight in a country that remains deeply...

Genocide: Christians Pay the Price for Inaction and Apathy

January 7, 2016 — ICC Note: As a slaughter of religious minorities - in many cases especially Christians - are being slaughtered by extremists organizations. The world is aware of the atrocities and yet...

Egypt Christians Celebrate Christmas Amid Tight Security

January 7, 2016 — ICC Note: As Coptic Christians in Egypt celebrate Christmas, the reality of persecution and violence against the community forms a worrying backdrop. Continued violence against Christians, kidnappings, and attacks on...

Iran Moves to Convert Confiscated Church Ground into Mosque

January 6, 2016 — ICC Note: An Assyrian Christian owned property that has been seized by the Iranian government is now likely to be converted into a mosque in Tehran. Traditionally, Iran has been...

Egypt’s Broad Blasphemy Law Gives Rise to Abuse

January 6, 2016 — ICC Note: Despite the changes implemented by President Sisi blasphemy remains a critical problem especially for Egyptian Christians. Even something as innocent as sharing a video of Islamic scholars debating...

Syria: Priest Released by Islamist Militants Two Weeks after Kidnapping

January 5, 2016 — ICC Note: Father Dhyia Aziz was abducted in Syria while attempting to return home just before Christmas. It was not made public who exactly had abducted the priest or what...

Persecution of Christian Converts Continues under Rouhani

January 5, 2016 — ICC Note: Despite being elected under promises of reform, the situation for Christians under President Hassan Rouhani has not improved. Christians are still regularly arrested and imprisoned for nothing more...

Inhuman Treatment of Christian Prisoner in Iran’s Notorious Gulag

January 4, 2016 — ICC Note: New reports have documented the abuse of a Christian prisoner being held in Iran's Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj, Iran. The deprivation of basic medical care has allowed...

Bleak Christmas for Christian Syrians in historic Turkish town

January 4, 2016 — ICC Note: The small number of Christians still living in the historic Christian town of Mardin mark Christmas with a sense of fear and uncertainty. The population has grown in...

Diyarbakir’s Christians suffer in margins of Turkey-PKK war

January 3, 2016 — ICC Note: As the conflict between Kurds and the central government in Turkey has heated up, the small Christian minority in the Southeast of the country has continued to suffer...

More than 55,000 died in Syria in 2015 as ISIL claims twin attacks in Syrian Christian neighbourhood

January 3, 2016 — ICC Note: More than 55,000 were killed in Syria during 2015, the fifth year of the conflict. The grim figure comes as Christmas celebrations were rocked in the NE city...

Middle East Christians Flee: Populations In Syria, Egypt, Palestine And Iraq Dwindle Amid Strife

January 3, 2016 — ICC Note: The situation for Christians across the Middle East is dire. Entire communities have been nearly wiped out as specific persecution has eliminated Christians in the midst of instability,...