Muslim extremists from Sudan were arrested in January in connection with the burning of a church building in South Sudan.
Members of the Sudanese Church of Christ (SCOC) in the refugee settlement of Yida awoke on the morning of 16 January to find their worship building in flames. Tens of thousands of refugees from Sudan’s South Kordofan state have set up homes in Yida, about seven miles from the Sudanese border.
Charred remains
The following week, the congregation of nearly 200 people held their worship service in the open air in the remains of the charred church building. Most church members are ethnic Nuba who have fled the bombing of civilians in South Kordofan in Sudan’s fight with rebels.
