SELIBABY, Mauritania — As many as 18 Christians arrested after a video of a baptism service was posted on social media have been released and told to practice their beliefs “discreetly.”
The 15 to 18 Christians were arrested beginning in late November after Muslims demanded that the Christians be punished, reports Morning Star News, quoting Christian Daily International and EFE news service.
According to EFE, Muslims protesters said Christians should be killed.
None of the Christians detained seem to have been charged with a crime. By Dec. 18, all had been released, a regional Christian leader told Christian Daily International.
“They have been asked to go home and believe what they want, but in private and discreetly,” the source said.
Religious restrictions
Only foreigners may publicly practice a religion other than Islam. In a 2022 report, the U.S. Department of State notes that Mauritania’s government generally does not prohibit non-Muslim groups from meeting privately.
In Mauritania, leaving Islam can carry a death sentence, reports Morning Star, quoting the persecution monitor Open Doors. The population is 98% Sunni Muslim, and another 1% is Shiite Muslim. The constitution establishes Islam as Mauritania’s only religion.
Mauritania is No. 20 on Open Doors’ 2023 World Watch List of places most difficult to be a Christian.
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