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2021-01-07

• Christmas Attacks Involved Executions

  

  Two separate attacks have led to kidnappings and at least twelve deaths in Nigeria over the Christmas season. In both cases, Islamic militant groups were responsible for the assaults.

  On Christmas Eve, at least seven people were killed when Boko Haram militants raided a mostly Christian village in Borno State. The terrorist fighters rode into the village of Pemi on trucks and motorcycles, shooting indiscriminately. Several homes were burned, along with a medical dispensary and a church building. At least seven villagers died, and as many as seven were reportedly abducted, including the pastor of the Evangelical Church of the Brethren.

• Facebook Post Leads to Hundreds Fleeing

  

  On December 22nd, a lay pastor in the Charar area of Lahore shared a faith-based post on Facebook that some local Muslims considered blasphemous. When he realized the response, Pastor Raja Waris apologized, and it appeared that the issue was resolved. However, word spread throughout the community and hundreds of Muslims began protesting, demanding that Pastor Raja be beheaded.

• Balloon Launches Officially Banned

  

  Since 2005, The Voice of the Martyrs Korea (VOMK) has used balloon launches as an effective way of getting Bibles into North Korea. Recent surveys indicate that an increasing percentage of North Korean defectors have also been given access to the Scriptures. Many of those Bibles may well have come through VOMK, whose distribution outreaches sent approximately 600,000 Bibles into the country over the years. It has been the only major organization supplying religious materials across the border.