Displaying items by tag: prisoners released

A wave of releases of Christian prisoners was not a change in policy, as had been hoped. It has been followed by the arrest of eight Full Gospel Church leaders, and 35 Christians were detained after raids on two prayer meetings. Three of the Full Gospel leaders are pastors in their seventies. Police took Pastor Araya (75) and Pastor Okbamichael (74) from their homes in the middle of the night and placed them in a maximum-security interrogation centre. Pastor Gebreab (72) was sick and placed under house arrest until he recovers enough to be incarcerated. No reason was given for their arrest. Also following the discovery of a list of Christian contacts, fifteen men and women from different churches in Asmara have been re-arrested. Having been imprisoned for their faith for between five and 16 years, they had been released last summer.