When India’s bishops meet in Bangalore during the first week in February(1st to 8th Feb), they will discuss “the role of the Church for a better India.” While India has only 18.6 million Catholics--fewer than half the number of those in Brazil, Mexico, the Philippines, the US, Italy, or France--it now has more seminarians (14,798) and sisters (95,530) than any other nation in the world.  read more »

ABUJA, Nigeria — More than 100 people have been killed in a series of attacks in northern Nigeria’s largest city, officials said Saturday, in what appears to be the deadliest strike yet by a radical Islamist group.The Islamic attackers in Kano on Friday evening struck eight government security buildings, the national police said, including the regional police headquarters, two local police stations, the local headquarters of the State Security Service, the home of a police official and the state police command headquarters.The radical sect Boko Haram, which has carried out an escalating campaign of violence in its battle to impose its version of Islamic law across Nigeria, claimed responsibility.  read more »

http://www.asianews.it/notizie-it/Kashmir:-in-pericolo-la-vita-di-un-pas...

Kashmir life in danger of a pastor falsely accused of forced conversions
by Nirmala Carvalho  read more »

Iranian Authorities Pressuring Jailed Christian Pastor to Convert to Islam, Sources Say

Government officials in are trying to convince a jailed pastor to return to Islam as he waits for the nation’s supreme leader to decide whether he should be executed for converting to Christianity, sources close to the case told FoxNews.com.Iran’s secret service officials recently approached 34-year-old pastor Youcef Nadarkhani at his prison site in Rasht and presented him with a book on Islamic literature, telling him they would be back to discuss the material and hear his opinion, the sources said.  read more »

INTERNATIONAL
Salafi Muslims' Agenda behind Christian Persecution in Egypt

By Jeremy Reynalds
EGYPT -- A recent spate of violence in Egypt, mostly incited by conservative Salafi Muslims after President Hosni Mubarak's downfall, has left over 24 killed, more than 200 wounded and three churches destroyed.According to a report by the World Evangelical Alliance's Religious Liberty Commission (WEA-RLC), the perception of threat to Christians is so severe that many of them are reportedly seeking to move out of the country.  read more »

ROME - 7th April 2011
By monitoring
Paul Bhatti, brother of the former minister for minorities Shahbaz Bhatti who was murdered by Islamic armed men, said he and his family forgive his brother’s assassins.Shahbaz Bhatti was killed March 2.

Speaking to reporters in Rome, Paul Bhatti said his family has forgiven Shahbaz’s assassins, “because our faith teaches us to do this. Our brother Shahbaz was a Christian and the Christian faith tells us to forgive.”  read more »