Please pray for Pastor Youssef Ourahmane, Vice President of the Protestant Church of Algeria (EPA), who is scheduled to have his second appeal against a prison sentence and a fine heard in court on 26 March.
Pastor Youssef was charged with allegedly holding an unauthorised religious meeting in a building not permitted to be used for religious worship. The charge relates to Pastor Youssef’s supervision in March 2023 of several Christian families who stayed at a church compound that includes a chapel that has been sealed by the authorities.
At his first appeal hearing on 19 November 2023, Pastor Youssef’s original two-year imprisonment was reduced to one year, but the accompanying fine of £605 ($725; €665) remained the same.
Pastor Youssef oversees several congregations in his role as Vice President of the EPA, an association of more than 45 churches
Pray that this second appeal will be successful, that the sentence will be overturned, and Pastor Youssef will be acquitted and able to resume his vital work overseeing Algeria’s churches.
