Myanmar’s Suu Kyi appears in court in person for first time since coup
Reuters Myanmar’s deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi appeared in person at a court hearing on Monday for the first time since her government was overthrown by the military in a 1st February coup, her lawyer told Reuters. Suu Kyi looked in good health and held a face-to-face meeting with her legal team for about […]
Russian monk charged with inciting suicidal acts in sermons
Moscow, RussiaAP Russian riot police stormed into a monastery Tuesday to detain a rebel monk who has castigated the Kremlin and the Russian Orthodox Church leadership and denied the existence of the coronavirus. In the overnight showdown, police clashed with the priest’s supporters at the Sredneuralsk monastery outside Yekaterinburg in the Ural Mountains. In this […]
Egyptian court acquits men accused of abusing Coptic woman
\ Cairo, EgyptAP An Egyptian criminal court acquitted three Muslim men accused of stripping naked an elderly Coptic Christian woman and parading her through the streets of a village in southern Egypt in 2016, the state’s official news agency reported. The three had been sentenced to 10 years in absentia in January, before they were […]
Cross in Jaegermeister brand bearable for Christians – Swiss court
Zurich, SwitzerlandReuters A Swiss court granted German liquor maker Mast-Jaegermeister brand protection for its logo displaying a stag with a cross between its antlers, saying the symbol was unlikely to offend Christians’ religious feelings. In the ruling published on Monday, the Federal Administrative Court overruled the Swiss patent office’s refusal to protect the logo for […]
In Australia, Israel Folau case set for trial in early 2020
Melbourne, AustraliaReuters Israel Folau’s unfair dismissal case against Rugby Australia and the New South Wales Waratahs will head to trial in February, 2020, if no settlement is reached beforehand. Fundamentalist Christian Folau is fighting the termination of his four-year contract in May after he posted a meme on social media that said hell awaited “drunks, […]
In the US, atheist watchdog drops fight to halt clergy housing allowance
RNS The Freedom From Religion Foundation has dropped its long-running fight against the clergy housing allowance permitted by the US Government. “We have full confidence in the legal merits of our challenge of the discriminatory pastoral housing allowance privileges,” the Wisconsin-based atheist watchdog announced last week. The clergy housing allowance remains intact for now. PICTURE: Mohamed Hassan/Creative […]
Myanmar’s top court rejects final appeal by jailed Reuters journalists
Naypyitaw, MyanmarReuters Myanmar’s top court on Tuesday rejected the appeal of two Reuters reporters sentenced to seven years in jail for breaking the Official Secrets Act, in a landmark case that has raised questions about the country’s transition to democracy. “They were sentenced for seven years and this decision stands, and the appeal is rejected,” […]
Jail for Iranian pastor’s son found guilty of ‘acting against national security’
World Watch Monitor The son of an influential pastor silenced by the Iranian government has been handed a four-month jail sentence for his involvement with illegal house churches, World Watch Monitor has learnt. Ramil Bet Tamraz’s lawyers were informed of the sentence for “acting against national security” on 8th July. One of the friends with […]
Conviction, sentencing of Christian in Algeria ‘ridiculous’, attorney says
Morning Star News A court in Algeria last week withdrew a six-month prison sentence but upheld a fine on a convert from Islam for carrying Christian literature and some crucifix-shaped keychains into the country, sources said. Idir Hamdad was fined 20,000 Algerian dinars ($US172) plus customs expenses after a judge at the court in Dar […]
Azerbaijan court turns down Baptist pastor’s appeal
World Watch Monitor Azerbaijan’s Constitutional Court in the capital, Baku, has informed Baptist pastor Hamid Shabanov that it will not be considering his appeal against a large fine for meeting for worship without state permission, reports regional news agency Forum 18. He cannot appeal to the higher Supreme Court because his offence was an administrative matter. […]