Eritrea arrests more Christians in fresh crackdown against unregistered sects
Eritrea has stepped up its crackdown on unregistered Christian denominations in the country, with some human rights groups reporting as many as 170 people arrested in house-to-house raids.
The authorities have been going house-to-house and arresting people who do not belong to the state-sanctioned Lutheran, Catholic, Muslim and Orthodox faith.
Release International, an organization that reports on persecution of Christians across the globe, reported on Wednesday that around 160 Christians have been arrested.
Sources who spoke with the advocacy group Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) said that about 170 Christians have been detained in raids in the capital of Asmara and seven other towns.
Last month, nearly 100 Christians were detained, including 49 evangelicals who were arrested during a wedding party.
Release International partner Dr. Berhane Asmelash noted that going door-to-door is a new tactic being used by the authorities in the campaign against unofficial sects.
"People used to be arrested for conducting unauthorised meetings, such as Bible studies or prayers. But this is new for us when they go from house to house. They are arresting people for their beliefs, not for their actions," said Asmelash, according to Premier.
"Children who are too young to be separated from their mother's face being brought up in jail unless their parents are released. They include a two-month old baby," he added.
A local source told Release International that as many as 12 children are in prison with their parents.
Christians who belong to unofficial sects have been at particular risk since 2002 when the government passed a law banning churches other than the Orthodox, Catholic and Lutheran Churches, and Sunni Islam.
According to CSW, among those arrested are 33 women who are being held at Nakura, which has been described as "a notoriously harsh prison island in the Dahlak Archipelago that was created by Italian colonialists in the late 19th Century to crush political dissent."
Most of the detained women are said to be young mothers who have left about 50 children without parents to care for them.
According to Release International, security forces are monitoring the children "to make sure they do not get support from the Christian community."
Eritrea has been ranked in the Open Doors 2017 World Watch List as the 10th worst nation when it comes to persecution of Christians.
Release International has launched a campaign asking Christians in the U.K. and Ireland to download and sign a postcard calling for the prisoners to be set free, and send it to the Eritrean Embassy in London.