An Algerian Pastor convicted of “illegal worship” has told a gathering in Washington DC that closed churches in his home country must reopen.

Pastor Youssef Ourahmane was a preacher for over 30 years in Algeria. In July 2023, he was sentenced to 2 years in prison and fined 100,000 dinars for the alleged crime of “illegal worship” – despite authorities finding no evidence of wrongdoing. In May 2024, his conviction was upheld despite an appeal.

The North African nation places 79 on the Open Doors persecution watchlist. The charity estimates a minority of 144,000 Christians live in Algeria, where they experience oppression at the hands of an Islamic government.

Open Doors states: “Most Algerian Christians are converts from Islam. They face harassment and discrimination in their daily lives, and their families and community may try to force them to continue to adhere to Islamic norms and practices.”

This was the case for Pastor Youssef, who converted from Islam. He became a leading figure in the Èglise Protestante d’Algérie (EPA), the protestant group whose 43 churches have been forcibly closed by the Authorities since 2019, leaving only one church open today.

Algerian police routinely claim that churches breach building code violations, and claim that this justifies putting locks over the doors and declaring worship in the buildings to be illegal. One church leader was subject to physical beatings in front of his young child, after peacefully peacefully protesting the closure of his church.   

Now seeking refuge in the United States, Pastor Youssef advocates for religious freedom in his home country. He is supported by the Alliance for Defending Freedom (ADF).

“We have had a lot of opposition,” he told an ADF event in Washington DC.

“By 2019 most of the Evangelical churches in our country had been shut down. When the churches were closed, a lot of the Christians felt that something was gone in their Christian faith because the building had been part of their identity.” 

When asked why he maintains his faith in the face of persecution, Pastor Youssef declared: “God knows the number of my hairs on my head, and none fall without His will. We have to accept God’s will, and God’s sovereignty… I try my best, by His grace, to be a good testimony to others.”