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40 Christians Arrested in Saudi Arabia for Religious Activity By Saudi Religious Police: 'For Trying to Spread the Poison and their Beliefs'
On April 23, 2005, Saudi newspapers reported that 40 Pakistanis were arrested by the Saudi religious police in a Riyadh apartment for conducting Christian religious activity. The following are excerpts from the reports:
The Saudi daily Al-Jazirah reported that 40 men, women, and children with Pakistani citizenship were arrested on April 21, 2005 after performing Christian religious rites in an apartment in the Thaharat Al-Badi'a neighborhood in western Riyadh. The arrest was part of a sweeping police operation by the Riyadh District Police, at the order of Riyadh Governor Prince Salman bin Abd Al-'Aziz.
The paper reported that the operation came after Saudi religious police – known as the Authority for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice [1] – followed and collected information on the activity of the 40, who listened to a proselytizing lecture by a Pakistani minister.
The paper also noted that during the police operation, which lasted nearly 10 hours, a cross and a large number of proselytizing books and cassettes were found [in the apartment]. The detainees themselves stated that they had come to listen to lectures by the minister. One of the detainees was a Muslim Pakistani, who acknowledged that he had been influenced by the Christian ideology. [2]
The Saudi daily Al-Riyadh said that the detainees had set up a church in the apartment, equipped with crosses, pictures, and statues. Likewise, it was said that during their religious activity, one of them was found praying, as the others present repeated their words, and one of the women arrested was listing the people's confessions and distributing writs of absolution. The Al-Riyadh report included a photo of the detainees and of a large cross and the group which was arrested.
A Saudi religious police source explained the reason for the arrest: "These people tried to spread the poison and their beliefs to others, by means of distributing pamphlets and [missionary] publications." He said that all the detainees "had been transferred to the relevant bodies for investigation." [3]
Link
Posted by: newsdesk
on Monday, April 25, 2005 - 05:38 PM
Saudi Arabia's muttawa (Islamic religious police) arrested 40 Pakistani Christians while they met privately for worship in Riyadh the morning of Friday, April 22. The gathering was a joint weekly Catholic-Protestant prayer service. Several carloads of muttawa members reportedly surrounded the house, halted the sermon and proceeded to beat some of the worshipers, overturning the furniture and breaking Christian symbols as they searched the house. All men, women and children present were detained at the Dera police station and later released. "We are very upset over this news," a Pakistan church leader said. "Why do Saudi Muslims have the right all over the world to build mosques and worship in them when they refuse to designate places of worship for Christians who are guest workers in Saudi Arabia?" Police authorities also confiscated the Christians' identification cards, Bibles, hymnals, tapes and other Christian materials in the Urdu language. The investigating police officer, Lt. Col. Saad Nawafal al-Rashid, said the raid was part of a wide-ranging "security campaign" that recently uncovered a prostitution ring, two home-brew alcohol factories and a variety of drug caches. The Pakistan embassy downplayed the incident, insisting that only 20 or 25 Christians were arrested, none of them children, before being released.
Ah yes, I know all of you anti-Christian bigots here will love this. Your wonderful religion of peace at work. I'm just curious, where are the Christian riots now that crosses and Bibles have been defaced, damaged and destroyed? Where should we expect 16 dead Christians and 100 wounded Christians? Rome? New York? Maybe somehwere in North Carolina? Just where oh where will these Christian rioters choose to gather?
Where is Newsweek's investigation of this? There isn't one? Oh man, color me shocked!
On April 23, 2005, Saudi newspapers reported that 40 Pakistanis were arrested by the Saudi religious police in a Riyadh apartment for conducting Christian religious activity. The following are excerpts from the reports:
The Saudi daily Al-Jazirah reported that 40 men, women, and children with Pakistani citizenship were arrested on April 21, 2005 after performing Christian religious rites in an apartment in the Thaharat Al-Badi'a neighborhood in western Riyadh. The arrest was part of a sweeping police operation by the Riyadh District Police, at the order of Riyadh Governor Prince Salman bin Abd Al-'Aziz.
The paper reported that the operation came after Saudi religious police – known as the Authority for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice [1] – followed and collected information on the activity of the 40, who listened to a proselytizing lecture by a Pakistani minister.
The paper also noted that during the police operation, which lasted nearly 10 hours, a cross and a large number of proselytizing books and cassettes were found [in the apartment]. The detainees themselves stated that they had come to listen to lectures by the minister. One of the detainees was a Muslim Pakistani, who acknowledged that he had been influenced by the Christian ideology. [2]
The Saudi daily Al-Riyadh said that the detainees had set up a church in the apartment, equipped with crosses, pictures, and statues. Likewise, it was said that during their religious activity, one of them was found praying, as the others present repeated their words, and one of the women arrested was listing the people's confessions and distributing writs of absolution. The Al-Riyadh report included a photo of the detainees and of a large cross and the group which was arrested.
A Saudi religious police source explained the reason for the arrest: "These people tried to spread the poison and their beliefs to others, by means of distributing pamphlets and [missionary] publications." He said that all the detainees "had been transferred to the relevant bodies for investigation." [3]
Link
Posted by: newsdesk
on Monday, April 25, 2005 - 05:38 PM
Saudi Arabia's muttawa (Islamic religious police) arrested 40 Pakistani Christians while they met privately for worship in Riyadh the morning of Friday, April 22. The gathering was a joint weekly Catholic-Protestant prayer service. Several carloads of muttawa members reportedly surrounded the house, halted the sermon and proceeded to beat some of the worshipers, overturning the furniture and breaking Christian symbols as they searched the house. All men, women and children present were detained at the Dera police station and later released. "We are very upset over this news," a Pakistan church leader said. "Why do Saudi Muslims have the right all over the world to build mosques and worship in them when they refuse to designate places of worship for Christians who are guest workers in Saudi Arabia?" Police authorities also confiscated the Christians' identification cards, Bibles, hymnals, tapes and other Christian materials in the Urdu language. The investigating police officer, Lt. Col. Saad Nawafal al-Rashid, said the raid was part of a wide-ranging "security campaign" that recently uncovered a prostitution ring, two home-brew alcohol factories and a variety of drug caches. The Pakistan embassy downplayed the incident, insisting that only 20 or 25 Christians were arrested, none of them children, before being released.
Ah yes, I know all of you anti-Christian bigots here will love this. Your wonderful religion of peace at work. I'm just curious, where are the Christian riots now that crosses and Bibles have been defaced, damaged and destroyed? Where should we expect 16 dead Christians and 100 wounded Christians? Rome? New York? Maybe somehwere in North Carolina? Just where oh where will these Christian rioters choose to gather?
Where is Newsweek's investigation of this? There isn't one? Oh man, color me shocked!