INDIA Two parishes attacked and shrines vandalised by Hindu extremists   Two Catholic parishes in India were subjected to "premeditated and planned" attacks on the night of Easter Sunday. The incidents took place in the diocese of Rourkela, in the state of Orissa. The first attack occurred in the village [...]

PAKISTAN Four Christians killed by Islamic State in the city of Quetta News has emerged that the Christians who were killed last week were murdered by Islamic State in what is believed to be a religiously motivated attack. A police source said that four Christians from the same family were [...]

SYRIA “The end of the war in Syria is in the hands of the international community”   Having just recently completed seven years of conflict, the situation in Syria is starting to deteriorate again, according to Maronite Bishop Antoine Chbeir of Tartus The day-to-day life of a Syrian family in [...]

DEMOGRAPHIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO Catholic laity leading the way   Since the end of last year, when the Catholic laity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo began to openly protest against the situation in the country, there has been supporting from many quarters, both inside and outside the country. [...]

COLOMBIA New church in Medellin del Ariari commemorates victims of violence   The Catholic faithful of Medellin del Ariari is eagerly looking forward to their new church. Thanks to the generosity of our benefactors, ACN was able to contribute 30,000 Euros towards this project, and now the new church is [...]

CHINA Bible sales banned online and in bookshops   Just as China pledged to uphold religious freedom, the country’s 70 million Christians are finding it harder to get a copy of the Bible. On Holy Saturday, China's communist government issued a ban on internet sales of the Bible, which can [...]

VATICAN Pope Francis will visit Ireland in August The Vatican has confirmed that Pope Francis will come to Ireland to participate in the final two days of the World Meeting of Families in Dublin on 25- 26 August. Pope Francis will take part in a faith-based cultural concert, the Festival [...]

EGYPT  “Help our faithful to stay” -  Coptic Pope Tawadros II   The head of the Coptic Orthodox Church has called on a Catholic charity to redouble its efforts to help Christians stay in the Middle East. Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II made the plea at a meeting with Neville [...]

SYRIA Christians come under attack in Damascus   First a roar, then a tremor that makes windows shake, echoes through the narrow streets of this maze of houses, churches and schools on the eastern outskirts of Damascus. A girl raises her head, looks up at the sky trying to dodge [...]

RUSSIA “Some mothers don’t even know that you have to bathe a baby”   The Orthodox Church has set up a crisis centre for women in Nizhny Novgorod with the help of the Catholic Church. In celebration of the “International Day of the Unborn Child” on 25 March, Peter Humeniuk, [...]