Authorities in Sudan demolished a church complex in Khartoum North, sources reported without any prior warning.
Bulldozers and trucks accompanied by police and armed forces personnel arrived at the compound of the Pentecostal Church in the El-Haj Yousif area of East Nile District at noon on July 8 and proceeded to demolish the church building, according to Morning Star News.
Initially, officials provided no explanation for the demolition, which included a worship hall and administrative offices, sources said. The church, belonging to the Sudan Pentecostal Church denomination (SPC), reportedly built the structure in the early 1990s, as confirmed by Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW).
It was also reported that officials did not request the church’s ownership papers before carrying out the demolition. Later, authorities told church officials that the building was destroyed as part of a campaign to remove “unregulated” structures throughout Khartoum state, according to Christian support group Open Doors.
“Last month, Rafat Samir, a church leader and the chairman of the Evangelical Community Council for Sudan, warned that the future of the church in Sudan remains precarious under the SAF’s de facto government,” Open Doors stated.
“They will target all churches in the outlying areas of the main cities and demolish them with a direct attack,” he said after last week’s incident. “As for the large churches within the city centers, they will target them by using other apparently lawful reasons to destroy the church buildings.
Church leaders condemned the destruction, interpreting it as part of a wider increase in persecution against Christians in Sudan. Pastor Juma Sapana, speaking on his Facebook page, urged all Christians to pray, saying, “We urge all Christians to pray so that this strengthens us in this persecution, and pray for the church in Sudan.”
This demolition follows the May declaration by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) that it had liberated Khartoum from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), with which it has been engaged in conflict since April 15, 2023. Despite this, fighting continues in neighboring Omdurman, and both sides have targeted places of worship since the conflict escalated.
Sudan was ranked No. 5 among the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, according to Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List (WWL), dropping from No. 8 the previous year. Conditions in the country worsened as the civil war, which began in April 2023, intensified, leading to increased killings, sexual assaults, and attacks on Christian homes and businesses, as detailed in the WWL report.
“Christians of all backgrounds are trapped in the chaos, unable to flee. Churches are shelled, looted and occupied by the warring parties,” the report stated. Both the RSF and SAF, which are Islamist forces, have attacked displaced Christians on accusations of supporting their opponents.
The conflict, which followed a shared military rule after a coup in October 2021, has terrorized civilians in Khartoum and across Sudan, killing tens of thousands and displacing more than 11.9 million people within and outside Sudan’s borders, according to the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner (UNCHR).
