A 17-year-old Somali girl who converted to Christianity from Islam was shot to death on November 25 in an apparent "honour killing," area sources said. Nurta Mohamed Farah, who fled her village of Bardher, Gedo Region, to live with relatives after her parents tortured her for leaving Islam, was shot in the head and chest with a pistol. Area sources said they strongly suspect that the two unidentified men who shot her were relatives or acting on their behest. Farah was killed in Abudwaq District, about 200 metres from where she had taken refuge. Christian sources said Farah's parents had severely beaten her for leaving Islam and regularly shackled her to a tree at their home. She had been confined to her home since May 10, when her family found out that she had embraced Christianity.
Pray the Lord will protect and deliver Somali Christians from those who persecute them (Romans 15:30-31). Pray the gospel will continue to spread in this nation despite opposition. Ask God to bring many government officials and leaders to faith in Christ.
For more on the persecution of Christians in Somalia, visit the Country Report at the Somalia Country Report.
Country Information
Population 12,094,640 (July 2021 est.)
Ethnicity (%) Somali (85), Bantu and other non-Somali (15)
Religion (%) Islam (99.6), Christianity (0.3), other (0.1)
Leader President Mohamed Abdullah Mohamed (2017)
Government type Federal parliamentary republic
Legal system Mixed legal system of civil law, Islamic law, and customary law (referred to as Xeer)
Source: CIA World Factbook
Pray for Somalia
Please join us in praying for our ministry partners who are effectively reaching Somalians through the multiple radio broadcasts, specifically asking God to further strengthen and equip them so they can continue with their vital outreach work. Also, pray that the hearts of those yearning to learn more about the Lord will be greatly encouraged through the broadcast messages. May these spiritual seekers be shielded from all harm, while their lives are being radically transformed by the ongoing work of His Holy Spirit.
On September 21st, police in the self-declared autonomous region of Somaliland detained a Christian couple. They were described as "apostates and evangelists spreading Christianity." To view a previously published report on the arrest, go to this page.
At an October 5th news conference, police in the self-declared autonomous region of Somaliland announced that a Christian couple had been arrested for being "apostates and evangelists spreading Christianity." On September 21st, the two were taken from their home in Hargeisa where police also found C
Paul, a Somali Christian brother, is faithfully recording messages of his faith to be posted on YouTube. Another Somali man recently came to faith in Christ after Jesus appeared to him in a dream. And yet another dreamed that Jesus told him to read the Bible; he has since accepted Christ as his Savi
Although the army is combatting terrorism, the true battle is a spiritual one.
The Somalia-based terrorist group, al-Shabaab, has overtaken Nigeria's Boko Haram as Africa's deadliest militant group, according to new figures from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.