SM1'S BLOG 4 U: Coronavirus: More Abuse of Christians by Raymond Ibrahim • May 10, 2020 at 4:30 "The Christian man said he begged for food to no avail. Farooq Masih, a 54-year-old Christian in Korangi, said that last Saturday, Abid Qadri, a member of Saylani Welfare, with other NGO members, handed out food cards in his area. But, when they got to Christian homes, they just moved on." — Shafique Khokhar, AsiaNews.it, March 30, 2020 Millions of Christians living in northern Nigeria's Kaduna State, "report they get six times smaller rations from the state than Muslim families. Believers we talked to shared that a Christian family of four receives a grossly inadequate ration of a single packet of noodles and one small plate of uncooked rice." — Open Doors, April 17, 2020. The situation for sub-Saharan Christians is further exacerbated by "[s]pecific targeting by Islamic radical groups like Boko Haram, ISIS, Fulani militants and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) across the region has displaced many thousands of Christians." Such Christians are now living in crowded and hard to reach refugee camps where they are "suffer[ing] intensely without water, sanitation and hygiene," making them extra susceptible to contracting the deadly virus. At a time when COVID-19 is showing the best of people -- countless doctors, nurses, health care providers, truckers, philanthropic institutions and churches in America have stepped up beyond the call of duty, and certainly without consideration for things like race or religion -- in much of the world, COVID-19 has merely occasioned more of the usual: hate for and persecution of supposedly contemptible "infidels," particularly Christians. According to a March 30 report, the Saylani Welfare International Trust in Karachi, Pakistan refused to give to food aid to poor Hindus and Christians, saying that only Muslims are entitled to receive their food packages. Pictured: Food aid distribution by Saylani, on March 30, 2020. (Photo by Rizwan Tabassum/AFP via Getty Images) Reports have appeared in recent weeks indicating that the coronavirus is furnishing a new pretext in the Islamic word to discriminate against, and even persecute, religious minorities, chiefly Christians. According to an April 29 report, "in countries such as Ethiopia Christians are denied the resources of the community, which is mainly composed of Muslims. These minorities are excluded from society, making it difficult to provide them with help or support." A separate report notes that in Muslim-majority Uzbekistan, Christians "have been denied aid because of their religion." Pakistan, as usual, offers several examples. According to a March 30 report: "A Karachi NGO has denied food aid to poor Hindus and Christians, who like Muslims are suffering from coronavirus.... "The Saylani Welfare International Trust has been operating in the Korangi area since 1999, handing out aid and meals to homeless people and seasonal workers. Continue Reading Article