| Baptist pastor released from jail in Azerbaijan |
|
|
| By Robert Dilday | |
| Thursday, April 03, 2008 | |
|
WASHINGTON -- Zaur Balaev, the Baptist pastor from Azerbaijan who was sentenced to two years in prison Aug. 8, has been released. Balaev was freed from prison on March 19.
Balaev was convicted and sent to prison on charges that he beat up five policemen and damaged a police car door. Arrested on May 20, 2007, during a raid on a church service at his home, Balaev was originally accused of resisting arrest and setting dogs on police officers. The congregation of the church denied these charges saying the pastor went peacefully. More than 50 people, including members of the congregation and non-Christian villagers, signed written statements testifying to Balaev's innocence. The Baptist World Alliance and the European Baptist Federation brought the matter to the attention of Baptists around the world, and made direct appeals to the Azerbaijani government. Both the BWA and the EBF took up the cause of Balaev and made direct appeals to government officials and on his behalf to protest his innocence.                 Comments (0)
 Readers alone are responsible for the content of the comments they post here. The comments are subject to the site’s terms and conditions of use and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or approval of the Religious Herald. Readers whose comments violate the terms of use may have their comments removed or all of their content blocked from viewing by other users without notification.
Write comment
You must be logged in to post a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.
|
Subscribe to this comment's feed
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
Nation
- ANALYSIS: Will the Kermit Gosnell verdict change the abortion debate?
- What now for West, Texas? The challenge comes when public attention goes away
- Religious liberty is Baptists’ ‘gift to the nation,’ says new director of faith-based office
- U.S. House funds disaster aid for churches
- Suzii Paynter elected Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s executive coordinator
| |