by Nigel Boys
According to Open Doors USA, another Christian in an Eritrean prison died on July 5 this year.
Although the man had been sick for some time, it is believed that harsh treatment he received while in the secret Mederera incarceration center contributed to his death.
The dead man, Yosief Kebedom Gelai, 41, had recently converted to Christianity and is the 24th reported death in connection with punishment received for supporting or participating in religious activities that are not sanctioned by the government of Eritrea.
Apparently, the only sanctioned religions by the Eritrean authorities are the Catholic Church, Orthodox Church,Lutheran Church and Islam.
It is estimated that about 62.5 percent of Eritrea’s population is Christian and the other 36.5 percent follow Sunni Muslim, with most of the Christian community being members of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church, according to reports.
Yosief was teaching at a primary school in Mendefera, the capital city of the Debub Region of Eritrea, after originally coming from Asmaraand. He accepted Christ about six months after his arrival.
However, Yosief attracted the attention of supporters of the ruling Eritrean People’s Front for Democracy and Justice while he was at the school. They were impressed with his serious devotion to Bible study and prayer.
In December last year, Yosief was arrested by the authorities and placed in the secret prison in Mendefera, where he was not allowed any communication with the outside world.
According to reports, many other religious prisoners are being kept at the Mendefera facility. But their location information is not being released to the public.
Some believe that because the government is so secretive in allowing access to prisoners in these secret facilities, there may be many more graves of religious prisoners that have not come to light.
An Open Doors team member said that “Christians should be hugely encouraged to see how God through His Holy Spirit enables His children, even new and isolated ones like Yosief, to remain firm in their devotion to Christ no matter the circumstances.”
World Watch Monitor, the news outlet of Open Doors, said that religious persecution in Eritrea is at its highest ever and getting worse by the day.
A total of 191 Christians have been arrested this year alone in the African country, and Eritrea has been called “the North Korea of Africa,” according to World Watch Monitor.
Salem Kidane, the director of Release Eritrea, a UK-based human rights organization, said that any religion that is not willing to come under the control of the government of Eritrea is liable and likely to be persecuted.
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