Christian Daily International, December 29, 2023 (excerpts)
Officials in Mauritania have released all Christians arrested after a video of a baptism ceremony in November prompted Muslims to call for their punishment, Christian leaders in the region said.
The Christians do not appear to have been charged with any crime, the Christian leaders indicated.
“They have been asked to go home and believe what they want, but in private and discreetly,” a Christian leader in the region told Christian Daily International. “It seems that our brothers have more to fear from the Islamists than from their government. Thank God for this happy ending.”
At least 15 and possibly as many as 18 Christians were arrested along with their families. There is no law against evangelism in the northwest African country, though officials ban any public expression of faith except Islam.
At least three of the Christians were initially arrested on or shortly before Nov. 30 in Selibaby, more than 373 miles south of the capital city of Nouakchott, according to Spanish news service EFE. The arrests stemmed from protests calling for Christians to be killed after a video of a baptism ceremony appeared in social media, according to Christian leaders in the region.