Raids against Baptists continue in Turkmenistan

DEYNAU, Turkmenistan — Public raids are continuing against Baptists in Turkmenistan. On Dec. 17, a prayer meeting of a Turkmen-speaking registered Baptist church in Deynau was raided by the police, the MSS secret police, a public prosecutor and a local imam.

Officials then searched the house without a search warrant — which is illegal in Turkmenistan — for religious literature, as well as threatening and detaining those present. Two Christians had their personal Bibles confiscated, and the church in Deynau continues to be put “under strong pressure.”