Trump’s Ban on Refugees May Lead to More Christian Persecution

Following President Trump’s recent ban on refugees from seven countries, there are speculations that persecutions against Christians will increase. On Friday, January 27, President Trump issued a 90-day travel ban on refugees from Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen and Libya. In addition to the ban, President Trump has suspended for 120 days the entry of all refugees into the United States, regardless of their country, and residents from Syria are banned indefinitely.Persecution against Christians is said to be most severe in the seven countries banned by President Trump. According to a report by Open Doors’ 2017, six of the countries – Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Yemen, are ranked in the top 10 nations where persecution of Christians is highest, while Libya ranked 11th. The kind of persecution going on against Christians in the aforementioned nations is described as “extreme”, while that of Libya is “severe.”According to a press release from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as many as 20,000 refugees trapped in those countries might have settled in the United States but for the ban.We need to pray for Christians in these nations because they are in the minority and their slim hope for survival has been further reduced by the ban from the United States.