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Posts tagged with "Luka Binniyat"

Persecuted human rights activist Luka Binniyat to appear in court

Seven months after his release from jail, Nigerian journalist and human rights activist Luka Binniyat will appear in court on 6 September to answer charges of cyberstalking. Ahead of his hearing he said he was feeling “hopeful and optimistic” about the outcome.

WATCH: "Nigeria's Middle Belt is the barometer"

On June 28, CSI's Joel Veldkamp appeared on a panel with Baroness Caroline Cox and Rev. Hassan John, and spoke about the complicity of the Nigerian government in the ethnic cleansing of indigenous Christians in Nigeria's Middle Belt. He challenged the US and UK government to make their commitments to "religious liberty" serious by using their relationships with the Nigerian government to stop the killings. Watch Veldkamp's talk, and the whole panel, here.

ALERT: Charges Reopened Against Persecuted Nigerian Journalist

Barely three months out of jail, Luka Binniyat risks being imprisoned again. Binniyat, a journalist and human rights activist who has been repeatedly jailed for his reporting on massacres of Christians in Kaduna state, has been summoned to appear in court again on Friday, to answer for charges that date to 2017. His supporters fear that his bail will be revoked, and that he will be returned to prison.

New Report: Terror and Mass Displacement in Nigeria's Middle Belt

Three human rights organisations – Christian Solidarity International (CSI), Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART), and the International Organisation for Peacebuilding and Social Justice (PSJ) - have released a new joint report about the situation in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. The report, entitled “Breaking Point in Central Nigeria? Terror and Mass Displacement in the Middle Belt,” was based on a joint visit to Nigeria, led by Baroness Caroline Cox, in late February-early March of this year.

VIDEO - While Luka Binniyat was in prison, his hometown was attacked

After spending three months in prison for his reporting, Luka Binniyat was finally released on bail on 3 February 2022. Just as he was being released, his hometown, Zaman Dabo, was attacked. In this video, he shows us his family compound and tells us about the family members he lost in the attack.

VIDEO - Luka Binniyat: “I am targeted because I am a Christian and I am relentless.”

On 4 November 2021, the Christian journalist and human rights activist Luka Binniyat was arrested for a report he had written about a massacre of Christians in his home state of Kaduna. He was charged with “cyberstalking” and held in prison for three months, before he was finally released on bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for 16 March. On 2 March, Christian Solidarity International’s Joel Veldkamp sat down with Luka at St. Andrew’s Cathedral, near his hometown.

“A silent genocide is going on against Christian communities in Southern Kaduna”

Interview with Jonathan Asake, President of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union. For seven years, Christian communities in the south of Nigeria’s Kaduna State have been under increasing attack by Fulani Muslim militias. Massacres, kidnappings, and forced displacements have taken place on a massive scale. CSI recently spoke to Jonathan Asake, president of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union, which is working to draw attention to this hidden crisis.

Luka Binniyat: "I was not surprised when they came for me."

Luka Binniyat, a journalist and human rights activist from Kaduna State in Nigeria, spent three months in jail on trumped-up charges linked to his reporting on Fulani militia attacks on Christians in his state. Just days after his release on 3 February, Binniyat spoke to CSI about the events that led up to his arrest, the “evil” being meted out to Christians in Kaduna State, and the horrors of prison life in Nigeria.

UPDATE: After 91 days in prison, Luka Binniyat is free

On 3 February, Luka Binniyat was finally released from detention, a week after he received bail. On 31 January, Nigeria Report published the article below, explaining the difficult bail conditions imposed on Binniyat by the federal court handling his case.

press releases · 28. January 2022

Baroness Cox, John Eibner write to Luka Binniyat

Caroline Cox, an independent member of the House of Lords, and Dr. John Eibner, the president of Christian Solidarity International, have written an open letter to Luka Binniyat, the Christian journalist imprisoned for his coverage of atrocities against Christians in Nigeria's southern Kaduna State. "Thank you for standing so boldly in solidarity with the victims of atrocity crimes," they wrote. "You are an inspiration. We hope and pray that we will be able to meet you soon in freedom."