Asia/Pacific

By BosNewsLife Asia Service with reporting by BosNewsLife's Stefan J. Bos HANAOI, VIETNAM (BosNewsLife)-- Church officials in Vietnam say one of the country's longest serving prisoners of conscience was released under pressure from the United States, but Christians remain concerned about an alleged Communist government-led crackdown on devoted believers, which included killing an evangelical pastor and a Christian convert.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN (BosNewsLife)-- New details have emerged about a murdered Christian teenager in Pakistan with investigators saying he was killed this month for "wasting horse food" and then hung from the rafters of a barn where he was employed, to create the impression of a suicide.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife SEOUL/PYONGYANG (BosNewsLife)-- North Korea's ruling regime ordered the abduction of a Christian missionary involved in contacts with the persecuted but thriving underground church in the Communist-run nation, an official and other Christians with close knowledge about the situation told BosNewsLife.

Martin Roth, BosNewsLife Senior Columnist MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (BosNewsLife Columns)-- Many Christians share my sense of frustration at feeling so helpless in the face of waves of Christian persecution around the world.But what can I, a lone individual living in faraway Australia do - practically speaking - to make a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of Christians being persecuted around the world?

By BosNewsLife Asia Service NEW DELHI, INDIA (BosNewsLife)-- Church leaders in India's eastern state of Jharkhand say the murder of a Lutheran pastor by suspected Hindu militants marks a new chapter in an ongoing crackdown on devoted Christians in the region.The body of Pastor Abraham Soreng of Goosner Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jharkand's Khunti district was reportedly found with several injuries on May 6. His funeral was held the next day in nearby Kadma village.

By BosNewslife Asia Service with additional reporting by BosNewsLife's Stefan J. Bos at BosNewsLife News Center and reporters in Hong Kong and mainland China BEIJING, CHINA (BosNewsLife)-- Christians in China are preparing for the funeral of Catholic Bishop Thomas Zhang Huaixin who died at age 90 after a turbulent life that included decades of persecution for his devoted faith in Christ and rejection of government control over church affairs.

By BosNewsLife Asia Service NEW DELHI, INDIA (BosNewsLife)-- An Indian pastor and his pregnant wife are reportedly recovering after they were attacked by Hindu militants for refusing to praise a Hindu god.

By Martin Roth, BosNewsLife Senior Columnist KUALA LUMPUR/MELBOURNE (BosNewsLife Columns)-- I sometimes struggle to understand why Malaysia should be moving steadily up the rankings in the Open Doors World Watch List of the 50 countries where Christians are most persecuted for their faith. In the 2016 list Malaysia is ranked at No. 30 – classified as moderate persecution – compared to No. 37 last year and No. 40 in 2014. What went wrong?

By Martin Roth, BosNewsLife Senior Columnist THIMPHU, BHUTAN (BosNewsLife Columns)-- Last week’s official visit to the Kingdom of Bhutan by Britain’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge has put the spotlight on this tiny nation, wedged between China and India high in the Himalayas. But how happy are its Christians?

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife SEOUL/PYONGYANG (BosNewsLife)-- A South Korea-based Christian mission group says one of its workers responsible for contacts with underground churches and rescuing Christians in North Korea has disappeared and may have been kidnapped by North Korean secret service agents. In a statement obtained by BosNewsLife, Serving Life International (SLI) said it was concerned about the whereabouts of Deacon Kim WonHo.