Yemen

Officials in Yemen don’t allow for burial of Christians in the country. Names of deceased Christians must be changed to Muslim names before burial.

According to experts, Al Qaeda is responsible for slaughtering of three Bible school students in Yemen.

Two Germany Bible school students are among foreigners kidnapped and murdered in Yemen.

Persecution of Christians and other religious minorities is commonplace in Muslim-dominated countries. We recently reported about the plight of Christians in the Middle Eastern country of Yemen. As this article reveals, women and children are also victims of the draconian laws of Yemen.

The interfaith dialogue between Muslims and Christians is a commendable act. Muslims in countries such as Yemen should take practical step by releasing the Christians that they imprisoned. Up to nine Christians are currently held in Yemen for choosing to follow Christ.

In July 2008, we reported about the imprisonment of seven Yemeni Christian converts from Islam by Yemeni authorities. Yemeni officials admitted that nine Christians were imprisoned between May and early August.

Recently, Yemeni authorities arrested seven Christians in the province of Hodiada, which is found in the western part of the country. The arrest was preceded by an intense campaign of hatred against Christians by the media and scholars in the country.

Yemen is in the process of establishing religious police that has similar functions like its Saudi Arabian counterpart. The Saudi Arabian religious police are infamous for their crack down on freedom of religion of non-Muslims. Forming similar institution in Yemen aggravates violations of freedom of religion and other rights in the country.

"We warn all the unbelievers who enter the Arabian Peninsula that [targeting] their money and their blood are religiously right for us,"

These are huge numbers for a small Arabic country and reflect the trends of the whole Arab world. The numbers of Muslims coming to Christ in modern times has no historical precedent.