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Mar 5, 2021
Santería is a syncretic religion that incorporates elements of Catholicism with the religion of the Yoruba people, who were brought as slaves to Cuba from the Congo basin and West Africa in the 16th century.
While…
Mar 26, 2021
In some countries around the world, religion-based laws are used by governments to impose capital punishment against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons. All of the 10 countries…
Apr 30, 2021
The program to resettle refugees to the United States has existed since 1980, with strong bipartisan support. Earlier this month, President Biden signed an emergency declaration to speed up refugee admissions into…
Jul 27, 2021
Cuba’s government has long been responsible for violating its citizens right to freedom of religion or belief. In its 2021 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the State Department again place Cuba on its Special…
Aug 19, 2021
We have seen a significant deterioration in religious freedom conditions in South Asia in recent years. Blasphemy cases, forced conversions, attacks on houses of worship, hate speech, and violence targeting…
Sep 17, 2021
When Afghanistan was under Taliban control in 1996-2001, the Taliban discriminated against and violently persecuted the Hazara Shi’a community—which they labeled as “heretical.” Subsequently, the Hazara community…
Jan 28, 2022
The situation for the Christian community in Afghanistan has grown ever more perilous since the Taliban took control of the country in August 2021. There have been accounts of the Taliban going door to door seeking…
Apr 22, 2022
According to the Pew Research Center’s most recent global data, Christianity’s diverse set of traditions comprise the single largest religious group on earth, of some 2.3 billion people—or nearly a third of the…
Apr 26, 2022
On April 25, 2022, USCIRF released its 2022 Annual Report, which documents developments in international religious freedom from 2021. The report provides recommendations to enhance the U.S. government’s promotion…
Jul 22, 2022
Several major political events occurred in South Asia over the last year. The Taliban, whom USCIRF has recommended for years as an “Entity of Particular Concern” (EPC), took control of Afghanistan in August 2021.…
Jan 25, 2024
One of USCIRF’s key functions is to make recommendations to the State Department about which countries we think should be designated as Countries of Particular Concern or CPCs, based on our independent research and…
Nov 21, 2025
Cuba and Nicaragua have ranked among the world’s most repressive governments toward religious freedom for years. In 2025, exiles and civil society organizations reported continuing severe restrictions on religious communities, including…
May 8, 2026
Individuals imprisoned for their religion or belief continue to face state repression even upon their release. For example, in Saudi Arabia, China, and Egypt, many released prisoners face bans on leaving the…