Former police and security officers in North Korea told a U.S. government body that their superiors had instructed them to play the role of Christians and infiltrate “underground” prayer meetings in order to incriminate, arrest, imprison and sometimes execute believers in North Korea.

Interviewed for a report issued on April 15 by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, the six officers were tasked - before they fled North Korea—with finding and eliminating small groups of Christians.

“There are no preliminary hearings when religious people get caught,” one agent said.

“[We] regard them as anti-revolutionary elements. When such an offender is caught in North Korea, the NSA officers surround the person and kick and beat the person severely before interrogating.”

Another agent said, “The most important question asked to the repatriated is whether they have met South Korean missionaries or evangelists or encountered or experienced religion. If they confess that they have met missionaries or deacons...then without any further questions, they will be sent to the NSA and they are as good as dead.”

Ten officials from the police, the secret police, the Justice Ministry and the Tax Ministry raided a Bible class held in a private home by the Greater Grace Protestant Church on April 11. A local official told Forum 18 News Service that they wanted to find out how many people were involved, who they were, and whether the church’s documents were in order. The pastor, Vladimir Tolmachev, said he was warned the church was not allowed to teach its own members without permission from the government’s Religious Affairs committee. Even so, the church itself is a registered organisation.

Visa rules introduced in October 2007 allow foreigners with a business or humanitarian visa - which includes religious work - to spend only 90 out of any 180 days in Russia. While not targeted at religious communities, they are having a harsh impact on ministries that depend upon foreigners. "Our priests are really, really suffering from this," one Russian Catholic told Forum 18 News Service. Many of the over 90% of Catholic priests who are foreign citizens are now forced to spend long periods abroad or even commute into Russia for Sunday Mass.

April 18 marked the one-year anniversary of the deaths of Necati Aydin, Udur Yuksel and Tillman Geske, who were murdered in the office of Zirve Publishing House in Malatya, Turkey. A traditional black-bordered anniversary notice was published in the Sabah  newspaper, stating, “We remember with love and longing the ones mercilessly taken from us a year ago.” Memorial services were held to remember the victims and were well-attended by members of Turkey’s small Christian community. 

Meanwhile, the trial of the murder suspects drags on.

In January 2008, Turkey’s Alliance of Protestant Churches published a report documenting human rights violations committed against the nation’s Christian community in 2007. Along with the murders in Malatya, many other incidents were described, including seven attacks on church buildings, four threats to kill church leaders, one murder plot against a church leader, and two attempts to kidnap a church leader and his young son.

A number of churches have since hired private security services and now lock their doors during worship services.