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A pastor in Liberia is facing ongoing legal challenges following a dispute with Muslim community members over his ministry activities. According to a local source, the situation began in 2023 when Pastor Sylvester led two individuals to faith in Christ. Following their conversions, he has been accused by opponents of preaching against Islam, praying loudly, and playing musical instruments early in the morning.

In November 2014, Deacon Jang Moon Seok (also known by his Chinese name, Zhang Wen Shi) was kidnapped in China while ministering in the town of Changbai, which is located near the country's border with North Korea. Following his abduction, the church leader was transported to North Korea where he was subsequently sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment.

On February 13th, 2017, Pastor Raymond Koh was abducted from his car by 15 masked men in the Malaysian city of Petaling Jaya. The incident, which was captured on security cameras and took only 40 seconds to unfold, appears to have been executed by professionally trained individuals. From the beginning, there were strong indications of official government involvement in the kidnapping. More than nine years have passed since the abduction with no news of the pastor's whereabouts. (For previously published reports on this situation, including video footage of the kidnapping, see this list.)

Dr. Augustin Sam'an is a researcher specializing in Christian apologetics and comparative religions. The believer operates a YouTube channel through which he responds to anti-Christian narratives commonly circulating in Egypt. Earlier this month, Dr. Augustin was arrested and charged with "contempt of Islam" in connection with the content he had been sharing online. The Christian apologist was subsequently detained for 15 days pending the authorities' investigation.

Pavel Shreider, a 65-year-old pastor, is presently serving a three-year prison sentence in Kyrgyzstan for allegedly "inciting racial, ethnic, national, religious or regional enmity." Following his arrest in November 2024, the church leader was convicted on July 10th, 2025. (For further details on his arrest, see this report.)

Under the leadership of Pastor Jin Mingri, Beijing Zion Church has grown into one of the largest unregistered churches in China. In addition to having several satellite campuses, the church draws more than 1,000 attendees to its Sunday services each weekend.

In June 2024, five Christian converts in Iran were arrested because of their faith. More than a year later, on July 16th, these believers were convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison for allegedly promoting "propaganda." Little information is available about the five detained Christians, and only three of them have been identified thus far. The charges stem from their attendance at Biblical training courses in Türkiye, as well as their involvement with house churches and online Christian events in Iran.

Zafar Bhatti was imprisoned in July 2012, following accusations that he had sent blasphemous text messages from his cell phone. Over the years, at least 47 separate appeal hearings were held on behalf of the Christian believer. Despite repeated recommendations from prison authorities for his release on medical grounds, Zafar remained in custody. In 2019, he suffered two minor heart attacks, and doctors warned that a third could be fatal. (View previous reports on Zafar's case.)

In 2023, Elder Xue Shaoqiang and Sister Wan Chunqin of the Bengbu Living Stone Reformed Church were arrested on accusations of "fraud" – a charge frequently used by Chinese authorities to target members of unapproved churches. The believers were sentenced to 30 months in prison, followed by a four-year suspended sentence. After their release on January 8th, 2025, both Christians were subjected to strict conditions. However, upon allegedly failing to comply with what they described as "excessively harsh and unreasonable" measures, their suspended sentences were revoked.

Iran's Supreme Court has recently rejected the application for a retrial that was submitted on behalf of Mehran Shamloui, a Christian believer who is currently serving a ten-year prison sentence for his participation in house church activities. Recipients of previously published Persecution & Prayer Alert reports may recall that Mehran had fled to Türkiye in search of refuge. While there, the accused Iranian was apprehended and forced to return to Iran, where he had subsequently been arrested. (The initially posted report regarding Mehran's arrest may be reviewed here.)