Following the autumn of El Fasher in Sudan, Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has spoken to an area believer concerning the situation on the bottom within the country.
Sudan is currently in a state of civil war between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). The RSF siege of El Fasher began in April last yr and concluded last weekend when the SAF withdrew.
Both sides, who effectively represent two rival warlords, have been accused of carrying out attacks on civilians throughout the siege. Millions of civilians have been displaced by the conflict. During the siege the RSF turned refugee camps into military bases.
ACN spoke to Mariam Ibrahim, a Sudanese mother who in 2014 was sentenced to death and to 100 lashes. Her alleged crimes were apostasy and adultery, although her real ‘crime’ was refusing to resign the Christian faith she had been brought up in.
“I used to be accused because I grew up as a Christian, because I practiced my faith, and since I married a Christian man,” she said.
“That was considered against the law. I spent Christmas 2013 in prison. I discovered I used to be pregnant just before being jailed. That first night within the cell I used to be terrified and will only pray.
“My mother had passed away, my father’s family rejected me, and the media called me ‘unclean’, ‘infidel’ and ‘deserving of death’.”
During her time in prison Ibrahim would cut out pages of the Bible in order that she could hide them in her hair and skim them in the toilet.
“That was the one place I could open it without being discovered. I still carry that prison Bible with me in every single place I’m going. When people ask me the right way to pray for the persecuted, I say: pray that they find access to God’s Word.
“In many countries, owning a Bible is seen as an act of terrorism. But the Bible isn’t a threat – it’s the story of salvation for all people.”
Ibrahim was eventually released due to assistance from the Italian government and international pressure.
According to ACN’s latest report, Religious Freedom within the World, persecution in Sudan has worsened lately as a consequence of its authoritarian government and Islamic extremism. The report also states that two thirds of the world’s population, around 5.4 billion people, live in countries with “serious violations of spiritual freedom”.
