Christian School in Sudan Closed After Raids by Authorities.

An evangelical Christian school in Sudan with more than 1,000 pupils has been closed after it was raided by authorities.

According to sources cited by Sight magazine, armed police, aided by civilians brought in from the surrounding area, were involved in the raid on the Evangelical Basic School in Madani, Al Jazirah state last week.

Sight said it was the third raid on the school in two months and follows the jailing of Christian staff members who tried to prevent the authorities from seizing it.

The school belongs to the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church and was established in 1901. It was first raided on September 5th by police who presented documents ordering its handover to the government’s National Ministry of Guidance and Endowments.

A Christian living in the a region told Morning Star News: “They just want to form a government body to run the school. Muslims were on board the bus that came from Khartoum.”

The school’s administrators and teachers are ethnic Nuba, a group targeted by Sudan’s controlling Arabist faction, and the move appears to be an attempt to exert further pressure on Nuba Christians.

Among those arrested on October 6th were the school’s headmaster, Rev Samuel Suleiman, and Rev Ismail Zakaria, pastor of the church to which it belongs.

Seven other teachers were also detained before being released on bail, accused of resisting the authorities.

Rev. Suleiman was also arrested during the September raid, along with 12 other teachers, and accused of supporting the Sudan People’s Liberation Army North, a rebel group fighting government forces. He has denied the charge.

• Pray for Revs. Suleiman and Zakaria while they are in prison. Pray for peace and protection for them and their families, for all charges to be dropped and for them to be released from jail.
• Pray for the school, for wisdom about reopening, and for protection over its teachers and students.
• Pray for Christians in Sudan, as they face serious persecution and oppression.
• Pray for the Sudanese Government, to soften their stance on Christians in their country and to allow freedom of belief for all their people.
• Pray for a move of the Holy Spirit over this nation, for many to encounter Jesus Christ and come to know the truth of His Gospel and Life.

Psalm 91 vs 14: “Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.”

Source: http://www.christiantoday.com/article