Source: www.persecution.org
Date: February 7, 2022
Algeria (International Christian Concern) – A church in the town of Ait Atteli faces threats of closure after the provincial governor submitted a case against the church’s pastor and his father on February 2. No date for a court hearing has been set yet. The threat of closure is based on a 2006 Algerian ordnance that regulates non-Muslim worship.
The church in question is located in Tizi Ouzou, the province where the majority of Algerian Christians reside and is the congregational home to more than 90 members. The pastor’s father, who was named on the governor’s case, owns the land upon which the church is located, according to Middle East Concern. The church was established in 2006 and is part of the Protestant Church of Algeria (Église Protestante d’Algérie– EPA).
At least 16 EPA-affiliated churches have been closed or threatened Authorities Threaten Algerian Church With Closurewith closure in the past four years by the Algerian authorities. The threats come as a result of failure to comply with the 2006 ordnance that requires non-Muslim worship to operate only in licensed buildings. However, the licensing commission has yet to issue a single permit. The Algerian church is the second-largest Christian community in North Africa and faces government-led persecution and limitations on worship.
HOW TO PRAY: Pray for equal rights for all religious minorities in Algeria. Pray for this congregation to maintain their church building. Pray for the provincial governor to come to know Christ.