Confusion about exodus from seminary

THE Board of Trustees of the General Theological Seminary in New York has accepted the "resignations" of eight full-time professors, amid confusion about whether their resignations had been offered. In a letter to students last Friday, the professors said that "the working environment that the Dean and President has created has become unsustainable." They spoke of "a number of very serious incidents and patterns of behavior which have over time caused faculty, students, and staff to feel intimidated, profoundly disrespected, excluded, devalued, and helpless". The Board said it accepted the "resignations" with "great regret" and said that it would conduct "an internal investigation into certain allegations of statements made by the Dean and President".

Man with schizophrenia on death row shot and hospitalised

A BRITISH man, Mohammad Asghar, was shot by a police officer last week, in the Pakistani jail where he was being held after being sentenced to death on charges of blasphemy (News, 31 January). Mr Asghar, who is 70 and suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, was shot by a guard on Thursday of last week and transferred to hospital. Reprieve, which is representing him, has written to David Cameron asking him to ensure that Mr Asghar is not returned to the jail but to a "secure medical facility where he can receive the treatment he so desperately needs".

Warning of increase in attacks on Egyptian Copts

POLICE raids on the homes of Copts, conducted last week in al-Minya, Egypt, must be investigated by the Egyptian Ministry of the Interior, Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) said on Friday. It reported that members of the community were "harassed and assaulted, their homes and property destroyed, and 12 people were detained". The raids followed a protest by Copts demanding that the police address the abduction of a Christian woman. CSW has reported an increase in kidnappings, intimidation, abuse and killings of Christians in Egypt.