Orthodox

TALLINN, Estonia — Belarus’ authoritarian leader on Friday greeted U.S. Rev. Franklin Graham, who arrived in the tightly controlled country to hold the largest evangelical Christian gathering in its history.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko asked Graham to convey warm greetings to President Trump and tell him that he has “reliable friends and supporters in Belarus.”

Since Trump returned to the White House, Lukashenko has released hundreds of political prisoners as part of U.S.-brokered deals that lifted some U.S. sanctions, part of the isolated leader’s efforts to improve ties with the West.

“Without the U.S. president, it might have been more difficult for us to establish our relations,” Lukashenko told Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Assn. Graham was accompanied by Greta Van Susteren, the anchor for Newsmax TV who is married to Trump’s special envoy for Belarus, John Coale.

Lukashenko has ruled the nation of 9.5 million with an iron fist for more than three decades, and the country has been sanctioned repeatedly by Western countries — both for its crackdown on human rights and for allowing Moscow to use its territory in the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Graham is set to hold the largest gathering of evangelicals ever in Belarus’ history, with thousands expected to attend what the organizers called the Festival of Hope at an indoor sports arena in Minsk, the capital.

Lukashenko’s rule was challenged after a 2020 presidential election, when hundreds of thousands took to the streets to protest a vote they viewed as rigged. In an ensuing crackdown, tens of thousands were detained, with many beaten by police. Prominent opposition figures fled the country or were imprisoned.

Five years after the mass demonstrations, Lukashenko won a seventh term last year in an election that the opposition called a farce.

As part of a deal in March that Washington helped broker, Lukashenko ordered the release of 250 political prisoners, while the U.S. agreed to lift sanctions from two Belarusian state banks and the country’s Finance Ministry, and to remove the top Belarusian potash producers from a sanctions list.

Another deal in April released prominent journalist Andrzej Poczobut in a swap with Poland that saw a total of 10 people freed.

However, Belarus still has 845 political prisoners, including 22 journalists, according to the Viasna human rights center.

Belarus opposition leader-in-exile Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya voiced hope that Graham’s visit will help the release of all political prisoners. “We continue to push for a complete end to the harsh political repressions in Belarus,” Tsikhanouskaya told the Associated Press.

Belarusian authorities’ permission for the massive gathering of evangelicals marks a shift, following years of crackdown on clergy — Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant — which saw dozens jailed, silenced or forced into exile for protesting the 2020 election. In the country of 9.5 million, about 80% are Orthodox Christians; nearly 14% are Catholics, residing mostly in western, northern and central parts of the country; and about 2% belong to Protestant churches.

A 2024 law required all religious organizations to reregister with authorities or face being outlawed if their loyalty to the state is in doubt.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has listed Belarus among countries with religious freedom violations, particularly noting its restrictive legislation.

Natallia Vasilevich, coordinator of the Christian Vision monitoring group, noted that even as Graham’s visit to Belarus was a “mega-important event” for evangelicals in the country, they continue to face a repressive environment.

“Some believers view Graham’s visit as a miracle and a window of opportunity, while others see a risk that they will have to turn a blind eye to repression and take part in something that makes the regime look nice,” Vasilevich said.

Karmanau writes for the Associated Press.

Warning follows Jewish man’s arrest over brutal attack in which a nun was pushed and kicked in Jerusalem this week.

The head of a Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem has condemned a brutal attack on a nun in the city earlier in the week and warned of growing concerns over the future for Christians living in the Holy Land.

Archbishop Atallah Hanna said on Facebook that “the attack on a nun in the city of Jerusalem comes amid escalating violations against Christian institutions in the city”.

He added that “this reflects increasing concerns about the future of the historic Christian presence in the Holy Land”.

In his post, which was accompanied by a video, he warned that such attacks “are no longer isolated incidents, but part of a recurring pattern that threatens the Christian presence,” calling for international action to stop them.

On Thursday, Israeli police released a video showing what witnesses said was an attack by a Jewish man on a French nun in Jerusalem on Tuesday.

Video footage showed the man following the nun, forcibly pushing her to the ground, causing an injury to her head, then briefly walking away before returning to kick her as she lay on the ground, before bystanders intervened.

According to The Times of Israel, police said they had arrested a Jewish man suspected of assaulting the nun in Jerusalem.

“The suspect, a 36-year-old male, was identified and subsequently arrested by police,” the police said in a statement on Wednesday, adding it viewed with “utmost severity” any violent act “driven by potentially racist motives and directed toward members of the clergy”.

Father Olivier Poquillon, director of Jerusalem’s French School of Biblical and Archaeological Research, told the AFP news agency the 48-year-old nun is a researcher at the institution and did not wish to speak publicly.

Rising attacks on Christians

Attacks on Christian communities in occupied East Jerusalem and Israel have risen in recent years, according to the Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue, which tracks such incidents.

Churches in Jerusalem have repeatedly called on Israeli authorities to act decisively to put a stop to them.

On Tuesday, Israel’s Foreign Ministry called the incident a “shameful act” in a statement on X.

“In a city sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike, we remain committed to protecting all communities and ensuring those responsible for violence are held accountable,” the ministry added.

Last month, a viral photograph showing an Israeli soldier smashing a statue of Jesus Christ in southern Lebanon with a sledgehammer caused outrage.

The military said an investigation had been opened and that “appropriate measures will be taken against those involved in accordance with the findings”.

Israel later said the soldier had been jailed for 30 days, along with another soldier who had been filming him. Six other soldiers have been summoned for questioning.