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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) sent the following letter on July 19, 2012:
The Honorable Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
United States Department of State
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Clinton:
On behalf…
… that since the beginning of the Egyptian revolution, two years ago, nearly 100 Coptic Orthodox Christians have been killed in Egypt due to sectarian violence, surpassing the death toll of the previous 10 years combined?The situation for Copts in Egypt…
February 26, 2013USCIRF Chair, Dr. Katrina Lantoss Swett testified on February 26, 2013 before the Subcommittee on Middle East and North Africa of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on "Demonstrations in Tahrir Square: Two Years Later: What Has…
Apr 1, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
By USCIRF Chair Katrina Lantos Swett
Even as we prepare to mark Holocaust Remembrance Day, European society's dark past of bigotry haunts our present
The following op-ed appeared…
...that two years later there still have been no prosecutions stemming from Nigeria’s presidential post-election violence that killed more than 800?In April 2011, immediately following the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan, more than 800 people…
Apr 15, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEApril 15, 2013| By USCIRF
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Ongoing attacks and retaliations by Muslims and Christians in Nigeria's violent, religiously and ethnically mixed Middle Belt has left more…
Apr 30, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEApril 30, 2013| By USCIRF
Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), an independent federal advisory body created by the International Religious Freedom…
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONMay 6, 2013
Beyond Boko Haram: Nigeria's History of Violence
By: Tiffany Lynch for the Council on Foreign Relations - Posted on May 6
For almost two years, stories about violence in Nigeria have focused almost exclusively…
USCIRF Chair Katrina Lantos Swett gave the following remarks at a conference, cosponsored by USCIRF and the National Endowment for Democracy on May 7, 2013Introduction
Thank you for that kind introduction.
It truly is a pleasure to join you today at the…
May 14, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONMay 14, 2013 | By Katrina Lantos Swett
The following was published in the Washington Post, On Faith on May 14, 2013.
Fifteen years ago, on May 14, 1998, U.S. House of Representatives voted in…
May 21, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMay 21, 2013 | By USCIRF
WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today welcomed the State Department's release of its 2012 International Religious Freedom…
...that particularly severe religious freedom violations are increasingly perpetrated by non-state actors in failing or failed states?One of the greatest emerging threats to freedom of religion or belief comes not from the actions of governments but from…
Jun 10, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
By Katrina Lantos Swett and Mary Ann Glendon
The following op-ed appeared on Al-Monitor on June 9, 2013.
In June 2012, more than 16 months following the Tahrir Square…
Jun 10, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONMarch 21, 2013 | By Katrina Lantos Swett
The following appeared in the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs on March 21, 2013.
In December 2012, Egypt approved a new constitution by…
Jun 26, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONJune 26, 2013 |By Katrina Lantos Swett
Editor"s note: Katrina Lantos Swett is the chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. The views expressed are the writer"s own.
The…
Jul 8, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONJuly 8, 2013 | By Katrina Lantos Swett
The following appeared in Eurasia Review on July 4th, 2013.
Last Saturday, on June 29, I was honored to speak in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to the Ahmadiyya…
...that since the June 30 large-scale protests in Egypt that led to the ousting of President Mohamed Morsi on July 3, there has been an upsurge of attacks against Coptic Christians and that these attacks have resulted in several deaths and injuries?…
....that Boko Haram has attacked more than 40 churches since 2012?
Boko Haram, a Hausa-language name meaning “western education is a sin,” is an Islamic sect that sees the federal and northern state governments, as well as political and religious elites…
Aug 16, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 16, 2013 | By USCIRF
USCIRF is deeply concerned by the violence against protestors and the targeting of churches in Egypt. The government's excessive use of force when breaking up…
Click here to view the August 2013 Factsheet: Nigeria: Boko Haram’s Religiously-Motivated Attacks
Aug 22, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONAugust 21, 2013 | By Robert P. George and Katrina Lantos Swett
The following op-ed appeared in The Washington Post on August 21, 2013.
Although religious freedom is a pivotal human right,…
Sep 11, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONSeptember 11, 2013 | By Robert P. George
The following op-ed appeared in CNN World on September 11, 2013.
Editor's note: Robert P. George is chairman of the U.S. Commission on International…
Sep 16, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 16, 2013| By USCIRF
USCIRF Letter to President Obama on
Unprecedented Sectarian Attacks Committed Against Christians in Egypt
The U.S. Commission on International…
Sep 23, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESeptember 23, 2013| By USCIRF
USCIRF Letter to President Obama on Upcoming Meeting with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) sent…
Sep 25, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
September 20, 2013 | By Robert P. George
The following op-ed appeared in the Christian Science Monitor on September 20, 2013.
As the UN General Assembly begins its new session,…
Oct 18, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONOctober 4, 2013 | By Robert P. George
The following op-ed appeared in CNN World on October 4, 2013.
Editor's note: Robert P. George is the chairman of the U.S. Commission on International…
Dec 3, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATIONDecember 2, 2013 | By Robert P. George
The following op-ed appeared in the Providence Journal on November 30, 2013.
Washington - As the nation celebrates Thanksgiving, Jewish Americans are also…
Dec 11, 2013
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
December 11, 2013 | By Katrina Lantos Swett and Mary Ann Glendon
The following op-ed appeared in Reuters & the Chicago Tribune on December 10, 2013.
December 10 marks Human Rights Day,…
Click here to view the December 2013 Policy Brief, Egyptian Constitutional Review
Nov 10, 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASENovember 10, 2014 | USCIRF
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Two anniversaries this month highlight the importance of continually confronting and combatting anti-Semitism wherever and whenever it arises.…
Dec 2, 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 2, 2014 I USCIRF
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) strongly condemns the horrific November 28 attack on worshippers at Kano’s Central…
Click here to view the January 2015 Factsheet: Religious Freedom and Nigeria's 2015 Elections
Feb 2, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 2, 2015 | USCIRF
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Reports of pre-election violence, combined with rising societal and political tensions, increase the likelihood of religiously-motivated violence…
Nigeria will hold presidential, federal parliamentary, and state parliamentary elections on March 28, 2015. The election previously was scheduled for February 14, 2015, but was pushed back due to security concerns in the north-east region of the country.…
Feb 19, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) strongly condemns the barbarous murder of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians by a Libyan affiliate of the Islamic…
Apr 3, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEApril 3, 2015 | USCIRF
Calls on President-Elect to Govern Inclusively and Address Inter-Faith Tensions
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)…
Jul 17, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEJuly 17, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Hundreds of people have been killed in Boko Haram terrorist attacks throughout northern Nigeria and in sectarian violence in the Middle Belt during the past…
Sep 28, 2015
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
September 28, 2015 | Daniel I. Mark and Katrina Lantos Swett
The following op-ed appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer on September 27, 2015
Washington hosted two dramatically…
Oct 21, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEOctober 21, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomed the October 14 release by the U.S. State Department of its International Religious…
USCIRF Chairman Robert P. George testified on October 27, 2015 before Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee at a hearing titled "The Global Crisis of Religious…
Nov 2, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today criticized the Tajik government’s ongoing efforts to control religious activities, especially those of…
USCIRF Chairman Robert P. George testified on November 3, 2015 before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission at a hearing entitled “Human Rights in Egypt.”From the testimony:
“The religious freedom landscape in Egypt has become further complicated over…
Apr 20, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 20, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes Secretary of State John Kerry’s re-designation on April 15, 2016 of Burma,…
May 4, 2016
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
May 4, 2016 | Robert P. George and Hannah Rosenthal
The following op/ed appeared in USA Today on May 3, 2016
Should it be a crime to deny the existence of God?
In the Russian city…
USCIRF Chair Thomas J. Reese, S.J. testified on July 15, 2016 before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission at a hearing titled "Blasphemy Laws and Censorship by States and Non-State Actors: Examining Global Threats to Freedom of Expression."
From the…
Dec 15, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 15, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) strongly condemns the brutal attack at Cairo’s main Coptic Orthodox Cathedral.…
Apr 27, 2017
The following op-ed appeared in the Georgetown University Berkley Forum on April 26, 2017.
The op-ed also appeared in Religious Freedom Institute: Cornerstone.
By former USCIRF Commissioner Thomas J. Reese…
Aug 3, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 3, 2017
USCIRF Condemns Egypt’s Deportation of Uighur Muslims to China
“These latest moves show a calculated indifference to the Uighur Muslim community”
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S…
Nov 16, 2017
The following originally op-ed appeared in The Hill on November 16, 2017
By former USCIRF Commissioners Daniel Mark and Sandra Jolley
People love lists. And when those lists are in the news,…
Jul 30, 2018
This op-ed originally appeared in The Hill on July 27, 2018.
By former USCIRF Commissioners Tenzin Dorjee and Kristina Arriaga
To the surprise of many, there is a foreign policy issue on which…
Dec 12, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 12, 2018
State Department Names the World’s Worst Violators of Religious Freedom
USCIRF Praises CPC Designation of Pakistan
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on…
The full report may be found here.
Summary of Findings
In Nigeria, a range of state and societal violations have adversely impacted religious freedom conditions in the country. As a result, since 2009, USCIRF has recommended the U.S…
Feb 16, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 15, 2019
USCIRF Releases Report on Violence in Central Nigeria on Eve of Presidential Elections
WASHINGTON, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious…
Jun 24
WHEN:
Jun 24th 6:59pm…
On June 27, 2019, Vice Chair Nadine Maenza testified at a Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing on violations of the right to freedom of religion of Christian communities around the world.Written Testimony
Hearing Webpage
Jul 24
WHEN:
Jul 24th 1:00pm
-
Jul 24th 1:00pm…
Gender:
Male
Perpetrator:
Tajikistan
Religion or Belief:
Christian – Protestant
Reports of Torture:
No
Reports of…
Additional Name(s):
Ibrahim Zakzaky
Gender:
Male
Perpetrator:
Nigeria
Religion or Belief:
Muslim – Shi'a
Health Concerns:
Minor…
Additional Name(s):
Zeenatudeen
Gender:
Female
Perpetrator:
Nigeria
Religion or Belief:
Muslim – Shi'a
Reports of…
Additional Name(s):
Shamil Rasulovich Khakimov
Gender:
Male
Current Location:
Strict Regime Prison YaS 3/5
Perpetrator:
Tajikistan
Religion or Belief…
The full report may be found here.
For 20 years, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has monitored and evaluated religious freedom conditions in Nigeria. This year also marks 20 years since Nigeria’s return to…
Dec 9, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 9, 2019
USCIRF Raises Alarm about Speech Laws that Restrict Religious Freedom in More than Half of African Countries
Briefing Tomorrow to Feature New Report and Recommendations
…
Dec 10, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 10, 2019
USCIRF Releases New Report on Shari’ah Criminal Law in Northern Nigeria
WASHINGTON, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)…
Dec 13, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 13, 2019
USCIRF Condemns Egypt’s Arrest of Coptic Activist Ramy Kamel
WASHINGTON, DC (December 13, 2019) – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) strongly…
Gender:
Male
Perpetrator:
Tajikistan
Religion or Belief:
Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture:
No
Reports of Medical…
Gender:
Male
Perpetrator:
Tajikistan
Ethnic Group:
Tajik
Religion or Belief:
Muslim – Unspecified/Other
Reports of…
Feb 11
WHEN:
Feb 11th 10:30am…
Gender:
Male
Perpetrator:
Tajikistan
Religion or Belief:
Christian – Jehovah's Witness
Reports of Torture:
Yes…
Gender:
Female
Perpetrator:
Islamic State - West Africa Province (ISWAP)
Religion or Belief:
Christian – Unspecified/Other
Reports of Torture…
May 8, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 8, 2020
USCIRF Condemns Arrest of Prominent Nigerian Atheist, Mubarak Bala
Washington, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today expressed its deep…
Jun 22, 2020
USCIRF Denounces Recent ISWAP Attacks in Northeast Nigeria
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today denounced the recent attacks by Boko Haram faction Islamic…
Gender:
Male
Current Location:
Germany
Perpetrator:
Nigeria
Religion or Belief:
Humanist
Health Concerns:
High blood pressure, pain on…
Jul 28, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USCIRF Condemns Execution of Aid Workers by ISWAP Militants
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) denounced the execution of five aid…
Aug 11, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USCIRF Condemns Death Sentence for Yahaya Sharif-Aminu on Blasphemy Charges
Washington, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today condemned the death sentence…
Advocacy:
Op-Ed: Say Her Name: Women Persecuted for Their Religion or Belief, March 8, 2022…
Title
2026 Annual Report - Egypt Chapter
File Upload
USCIRF 2026 Annual Report Egypt.pdf
Language
English
Year
2026…
Title
2026 Annual Report - Nigeria Chapter
File Upload
USCIRF 2026 Annual Report Nigeria.pdf
Language
English
Year
2026…
Title
2026 Annual Report - Tajikistan Chapter
File Upload
USCIRF 2026 Annual Report Tajikistan.pdf
Language
English
Year…
May 7, 2013
USCIRF Chair Katrina Lantos Swett gave the following remarks at a conference, cosponsored by USCIRF and the National Endowment for Democracy on May 7, 2013
Introduction
Thank you for that kind introduction.
It…
Conscientious objection to military service is frequently connected to freedom of religion or belief, as many conscientious objectors are motivated by deeply-held religious beliefs. The right to conscientious objection is recognized under international…
Oct 23
WHEN:
Oct 23rd 3:00pm…
Dec 10
WHEN:
Dec 10th 9:30pm…
Aug 05
WHEN:
Aug 5th 10:30am…
Sep 16
WHEN:
Sep 16th 10:30pm
-
Sep 15th 12:00pm…
Sep 17, 2020
USCIRF Commissioner Frederick A. Davie Adopts Mubarak Bala and Yahaya Sharif-Aminu of Nigeria through the Religious Prisoners of Conscience Project
Washington, DC – United States Commission on International…
USCIRF ADVOCATE: Frederick A. Davie
Advocacy:
Press Release: USCIRF Commissioner Davie Calls for the Immediate…
USCIRF ADVOCATE: Frederick A. Davie
Advocacy:
Press Release: USCIRF Condemns Mubarak Bala Prison Sentence, Calls for…
Sep 29, 2020
This op-ed was originally published in The Globe Post, on September 29, 2020.
By Vice Chair Tony Perkins and Commissioner Frederick A. Davie
In the west African country of Burkina Faso, the Grand Imam of Djibo…
This factsheet explores the role that religion plays in escalating violence committed by and against Fulani communities in west and central Africa. Predominantly Muslim and historically associated with cattle herding and livestock rearing, Fulani…
Oct 1, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USCIRF Releases New Report about Religious Tensions and Fulani Communities in West and Central Africa
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)…
Oct 21
WHEN:
Oct 21st 10:00am
-
Oct 21st 11:30am…
Oct 16, 2020
Welcome to USCIRF's new series! In USCIRF Spotlight, we discuss major topics in the news and explore how they impact religious freedom around the globe. For this week's episode, listen to what our…
Read the full Issue Update:
The Global Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses
This update describes official discrimination against Jehovah’s Witnesses around the world, with a particular focus on countries where members have been imprisoned for…
Nov 10, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 10, 2020
USCIRF Releases New Report about Global Persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today…