While Pastor Abdalla Haron Sulieman in Sudan was holding a prayer meeting for the purpose of healing his sick mother, he was arrested by authorities from the premises of the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church on accusation of “witchcraft.” The pastor’s mother, Aisha Adam (60) was healed following the prayer, which led many people from the predominantly Islam based area to rush to the church for healing. This caused agitation among Muslim extremists who coaxed the police into arresting the pastor on the basis of the accusation that he is practicing witchcraft. The incident generated protests from Sudanese Christians who used social media to express their opinion and to demand the immediate release of the pastor.
Christian News Network reports:
Authorities in Sudan on Nov. 21 arrested and jailed a church leader on charges of “witchcraft” for leading a prayer meeting for his ailing mother, sources said.
Pastor Abdalla Haron Sulieman was leading a prayer meeting for his mother, who suffered from an infection in her legs that kept her from walking, when authorities in El Hasahisa town, Al Jazirah state walked into the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church church site, area sources said.
His mother, 60-year-old Aisha Adam, was healed after he prayed for her, and others from the predominantly Muslim area began crowding in for healing. The meeting angered Muslim extremists who persuaded police to arrest the pastor on charges of claiming to be a witchdoctor (Case No. 6737/2022 under the Sudan Criminal Code of 1991.)
“This is a serious violation against Christians in Sudan,” said evangelist Francis Ismail, who visited the pastor on Thursday (Nov. 24).
Sudanese Christians took to social media, some demanding the pastor’s immediate release, and others terming the jailing more evidence of ongoing and systematic persecution of Christians in Sudan.
“We need to continue to pray for our brother because he is jail for the sake of the gospel,” said one Sudanese Christian on his Facebook page.
Following two years of advances in religious freedom in Sudan after the end of the Islamist dictatorship under Omar al-Bashir in 2019, the specter of state-sponsored persecution returned with the military coup of Oct. 25, 2021.
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