Roman ruins in Shahba, part of Syria’s Suwayda province, in 2011. csi Guest commentary by Fabrice Balanche A version of this article was originally published in French in Conflits on July 16, 2025. A sectarian conflict On July 13, a Druze man in southern Syria was kidnapped by an armed Sunni Arab group manning a… Read more »
President Trump, Prime Minister Pashinyan and President Aliyev, shortly after signing a non-binding declaration at the White House on Friday. (primeminister.am) “We have a very comprehensive agreement,” said U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday, with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan sitting on his right, and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of… Read more »
Faces of the 23 Armenian hostages being held by Azerbaijan. Nearly two years after an Azerbaijani military operation forced the entire Armenian Christian population of Nagorno Karabakh to flee, Azerbaijan continues to detain at least 23 Armenians – civilians, POWs and members of the Nagorno Karabakh elected government. 80 more are considered forcibly disappeared. As… Read more »
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia (left) and President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan (right) in Abu Dhabi in July. photo: primeminister.am Media Release As the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia meet at the White House today, CSI is urging President Trump to support the Swiss Peace Initiative for Nagorno Karabakh and insist on the… Read more »
Christians joined together at Freedom Park in Bengaluru, in India’s southern Karnataka state, on August 2 to protest the arrest of two nuns. csi Thousands of Christians across India have taken to the streets following the arrest of two Catholic nuns accused of forced religious conversion and human trafficking. Christian leaders say the allegations… Read more »
Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, known today as President Ahmed al-Sharaa of Syria, sits for a podcast interview. February 4, 2025. x. Guest commentary by Sami Alkayial ENGLISH – scroll down for Arabic Many segments of Syrian society, especially ethnic and religious minorities, as well as democratic and secular activists, were shocked by the European response to… Read more »
Image background: CSI visited Aleppo in 2017, under the brutal Assad regime that preceded the HTS takeover of Syria in December 2024. csi The Christian Solidarity Podcast: Violence grows against religious minorities in Syria In the second episode of the Christian Solidarity Podcast, host Abi McDougal and Dr. Joel Veldkamp, CSI’s director for public… Read more »
Erich Vontobel called on the U.S. to support the Swiss Peace Initiative. csi The plight of religious minorities in the “new Syria” is a continuing concern following massacres of Alawites and then Druze under the interim government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa. On July 1, CSI held a side event devoted to the topic at… Read more »
Father Alphonsus Afina, safe at home after spending 51 days in Boko Haram captivity. Photo provided. On June 1, one of CSI’s project partners in Nigeria, Father Daniel Aphonsus Afina, was abducted by Boko Haram terrorists. 51 days later, on July 21, he was released, and returned to his diocese in Maiduguri, where he was… Read more »
CSI is providing emergency aid to survivors. ECCVN On the night of July 15, while villagers were asleep, a group of more than 30 suspected Fulani militants invaded Bindi (Jebbu) Ta-hoss, a predominantly Christian community in Riyom local government area of Plateau State. The militants are said to have gone from house to house,… Read more »
