Sudan Demolishes Pentecostal Church Building

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

KHARTOUM (Worthy News) – Civilians backed by Sudanese security forces have demolished the building of a Pentecostal Church in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, Christians told Worthy News Friday.

The Pentecostal Church in East Nile, one of Khartoum’s largest suburbs, was reportedly surrounded by vehicles belonging to police and the official Sudanese Armed Forces.

Watched by security forces, “civilians demolished the structure of the church “without any prior warning on July 8, confirmed the Middle East Concern (MEC) advocacy group.

“The building, built in 1990, included a worship hall and administrative offices,” added MEC, which is closely following the situation.

“While police and the Army claimed to have no part in the process, the vehicles were clearly marked and their presence allowed the perpetrators to act with impunity,” MEC explained to Worthy News. “Police also prevented civilians from video recordings or photos during the demolition.”

Christians noted “two bulldozers, four trucks and three large vehicles loaded with soldiers, as well as nearly 30 civilians” during the destruction.

URGING PRAYERS

MEC said church leaders request prayer for the “church to respond in a Christ-like manner and the rebuilding of the destroyed church.”

In comments shared with Worthy News, Christians also urged prayers for “harassment of Christians to cease and for the church to be able to meet and worship in peace.”

MEC suggested that the latest tensions were part of a broader government attempt to eradicate the Christian faith in the Islamic oppressive nation.

“Efforts to expel Christians from Sudan continue. In [the] Shamaliya [area] mobs of extremists have also started harassing Christians as they meet for worship. Furthermore, many Christians report discrimination when claiming governmental aid packages,” MEC added.

Christian advocacy group Open Doors ranks Sudan 5th on its annual World Watch List of 50 nations where ot says Christians face the most persecution for their faith. “More than 100 churches, Christian buildings, and even private homes belonging to Christians have been forcibly occupied during the country’s ongoing conflict.”

Open Doors also noted “a spike in the abduction and killing of Christian men by radical Islamic groups” in Sudan, where 2 million Christians comprise about 4.1 percent of the mainly Muslim population.

‘FALSE CHARGES’

“Church leaders are targeted by false charges, including terrorism and apostasy, despite the apostasy law being abolished in 2020,” Open Doors observed in a recent assessment.

“Converts from Islam face violence, imprisonment, forced marriage, rejection, sexual violence, disinheritance, and losing custody of their children. Many are forced to flee their homes, or feel that staying is unsustainable,” the group added.

Additionally, Christians also suffer “exceptional hardship in the hunger crisis” in Sudan, as local communities discriminate against them and won’t give them support,” Open Doors said.

ONGOING WAR

Their hardship has been fueled by an ongoing civil war in the African nation, which began in April 2023 between two rival factions of Sudan’s military government

The conflict involves the Sudanese Armed Forces led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (commonly known as Hemedti).

Several smaller armed groups have also joined the fighting.

Clashes have been especially in Khartoum, where the conflict began with large-scale battles, and in the Darfur region.

MEC told Worthy News it supports prayer requests for Sudanese “Christians not to succumb to the community pressure and attempts to push them out of the area and country.”

The following code is how the above article is generated with the Worthy Suite WordPress Plugin.

[worthy_plugins_news_story_body]

This is how you display a story with an image.