It is time for the US Commission on International Religious Freedom and the global religious freedom advocacy community to highlight the egregious religious freedom violations that result from Turkey’s restrictions on using the Kurdish language as part of religious services.

Given the Turkish government’s particularly troubling conduct in 2020, Secretary of State Antony Blinken should deliver an honest message about the alarming trajectory of religious freedoms in Turkey.

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its 2020 Annual Report and recommended the US government include Turkey on the State Department’s “Special Watch List” for “engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom.”

Even as we remember that Jesus rose from the dead in Jerusalem, Christians in the Middle East and elsewhere experience some of the highest levels of persecution in the world.

Pastor Brunson is free, but many others are not. The U.S. should not push Turkey away, but continue the hard work of diplomatic engagement around core human rights issues. It should also continue to engage broad range of challenges these partner countries are facing in the region. 

Are American evangelicals right to support US sanctions against Turkey to release American missionary Andrew Brunson?

Although Turkish human rights abuses may seem like a secondary concern for the US in light of Turkish threats against US partners in Syria and Turkey’s deepening relationship with Russia and Iran, these issues cannot be separated.

Christian persecution is as real today as it’s ever been. Our brothers and sisters suffering it need protection and rescue. They also need prayer. The International Day of Prayer is meant to give that to them.