On 5 January a church in Karuwalagaswewa was attacked and burned by a mob. Threats had previously been made to the church’s pastor, who informed the police. When the police inspector met with the pastor and a local Buddhist monk, he promised to maintain law and order. However, that very night the church was destroyed by a Buddhist mob of over 200. Sri Lanka’s constitution declares that Buddhism, the religion of the island’s ethnic Sinhalese majority, shall have ‘the foremost place’. Christians, who comprise 8% of the population, are commonly harassed and have been victims of violence, with Buddhists claiming that churches need to be registered, even though it is not actually a legal requirement. The church’s congregation have continued to meet, in the open air, despite further threats.

Officials say that six Afghan Red Cross workers have been killed by suspected IS group gunmen in the province of Jowzjan. Two others are unaccounted for, feared abducted by the gunmen. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) confirmed the deaths, but said it did not know who was to blame. The ICRC said it is putting its work in Afghanistan on temporary hold. ‘We need to understand more clearly what happened; this is one of the most critical humanitarian contexts, and we will definitely do everything to continue our operations there,’ said ICRC director of operations Dominik Stillhart. IS has been operating in Afghanistan since 2015, claiming responsibility for attacks in Kabul and the east. But there has been no immediate claim for the attack in Jowzjan.

‘Children have dropped out of school due to hunger; pregnant women and the elderly are the most affected. Cattle, which are the only source of livelihood, are dying, and the remaining ones are stolen by bandits,’ cries a Kenyan pastor in East Pokot, where the last rainfall was in June 2016. From nearby Marsabit, Pastor Jeremiah Omar reports that 70% of the livestock are already dead from drought - a disaster for the many nomadic communities. The food crisis is escalating, not only in Kenya but also in northern Uganda, which has absorbed over half a million refugees from South Sudan since last July, mostly women and children. Many are widows, or do not know what has happened to their husbands. Many people have very little apart from their clothes they are wearing. Freak weather and drought, due to the El Niño climatic effect, have caused a catastrophic situation. There will be no relief until June at the earliest, and then only if the rains come at the right time. An added problem in Kenya is that many of the worst-affected areas - in the north and the coastal region - are the areas where Christians are a despised, marginalised and oppressed minority amongst a Muslim majority.

On Wednesday Somalia's presidential elections took place, with over twenty candidates to choose from. In a surprise result, former prime minister Hassan Sheikh Mohamud decisively defeated the incumbent president. It is the first time since the 1991 overthrow of President Said Barre that a new leader has been chosen inside the country; the UN sees this as a sign of improving security. The election, in Mogadishu airport (considered the safest place in the city), went ahead under close security against the militant group al-Shabaab, which had recently carried out several attacks in the capital. Mr Mohamud is a professor and activist who has worked for several peace and development organisations including Unicef. It remains to be seen if his election will make any difference for the small, secret community of Somali Christians. They face extreme persecution from their communities and tribes. If their faith is discovered, followers of Christ could be murdered on the spot. Al-Shabaab has stated publicly that it 'wants Somalia free of all Christians'. According to Open Doors, the country is tdhe second-most dangerous in the world for Christians. See: