TURKEY | JAN. 04, 2023 — 16-Year-Old Beaten for Wearing a Cross
TURKEY — 16-Year-Old Beaten for Wearing a Cross
The young man had a front tooth smashed and replaced with a partial denture.
Türkiye (Turkey) hosts the largest number of refugees in the world, around 4 million, mainly from Syria and also from Iraq and Iran.
Numerous churches in Türkiye minister to these refugees, one of which reported that a teenager from a family of Christian converts was recently assaulted. The 16-year-old boy was walking down a street wearing a cross necklace when some young Turkish men confronted him and insulted him for wearing the symbol of Christ’s death. They asked why he was wearing it, and when he responded, “Because I am a Christian,” they began beating him. The attackers split the boy’s lip and smashed one of his teeth into his gums. VOM helped the young man receive dental services to repair the damage.