The North- Eastern African Nation of Eritrea has recently jailed 30 Pentecostal Christians for praying.

Berhane Asmelash of Release Eritrea, a religious rights group revealed, adding that Christians were arrested at three different locations around the capital city of Asmara.

The government banned all Pentecostal churches, recognizing four faith groups, which are Orthodox Christianity, the Roman Catholic Church, the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Eritrea and Sunni Islam, 17 years ago.

Eritrea has a tradition of persecuting any type of Christianity which it sees as unauthorized by the state, adding that other religious groups are illegal and instruments of foreign governments.

Report gathered states that government authorities are raiding target citizens in their own homes, “Police officers carry out continuous raids in private homes where devotees of unrecognized religions, especially Pentecostal Christians, meet for community prayer. They are released only if they disavow their faith.”

Christian Post reports that the police arrested 141 Christians, including 23 men, 104 women, and 14 minors, at Mai Temenai area of Asmara.

Eritrea, which is located on Africa’s Red Sea coast, is identified by persecution watch organizations as the “North Korea of Africa” for its brutal regime led by President Isaias Afwerki.