The island nation topped a list of 53 states – narrowly beating Lesotho and Botswana – published by the Council for Christians and Jews (CCJ).

The study analysed statistics collected by the Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures Project which considered factors such as how free people are to preach publicly or convert.

The risk of religious hostility faced by organisations and private individuals from sources such as terrorism and armed conflict was also considered.

The Commonwealth countries where religious freedoms were found to be most under threat were Malaysia, India and Nigeria.

The UK was ranked middle in the list.

CCJ trustee Zaki Cooper said he hopes the study will encourage Commonwealth leaders meeting in London this week to hold one another to task over shortcomings in religious freedoms.

He told Premier: “The Commonwealth doesn’t have military power, it doesn’t have economic power but it has soft power; the power of persuasion.

“If some of the Commonwealth members can persuade these countries to make progress where they are lacking in religious freedom, I think that would be a very good thing indeed.”

Click here to listen to Premier’s Alex Williams speaking with the Council of Christians and Jews’ Zaki Cooper:

Tammie Jo Shults, a Christian and one of the first female fighter pilots in the US Navy, was the captain and piloting the Dallas-bound Flight 1380 when it made an emergency landing on Tuesday in Philadelphia, according to her husband, Dean Shults.

One of the engines on the Boeing 737 exploded while the plane was travelling 500 mph at 30,000ft with 149 people on board.

Shrapnel hit the plane and passengers said they had to rescue a woman who was being blown out of a damaged window. The woman later died of blunt force trauma to her head, neck and torso.

Captain Shults calmly relayed details about the crisis to air traffic controllers, and passengers commended her handling of the situation.

In a statement late Wednesday, Mrs Shults and First Officer Darren Ellisor said they felt like they were simply doing their jobs.

“On behalf of the entire Crew, we appreciate the outpouring of support from the public and our coworkers as we all reflect on one family’s profound loss,” the two pilots said in the statement, adding that their “hearts are heavy”.

Friends at Mrs Shults’ church in Boerne, Texas, about 30 miles northwest of San Antonio, said they were not surprised after listening to the recording and reading media reports about her actions.

“Everybody is talking about Tammie Jo and how cool and calm she was in a crisis, and that’s just Tammie Jo,” Rachel Russo said….

Dan Johnson has been giving evidence at the High Court where Sir Cliff is seeking damages from the BBC for how it reported the police investigation into alleged abuse.

The singer denied the allegations and was later cleared of any wrongdoing.

Mr Johnson was asked what he meant in an internal BBC email when he made remarks about a clip of Evangelist preacher Billy Graham rally at Bramall Lane in the 1980s, where the alleged sex assault was said to have happened.

Justin Rushbrooke QC, for Sir Cliff, said the phrases “it wasn’t just the hand of God doing the touching” and “guilty in my book” were an indication of the reporter’s “mindset” about the story.

The barrister said Mr Johnson was treating the singer “as a guilty man”.

But Mr Johnson repeatedly denied he was referring to Sir Cliff in the email, and said the comments were about Mr Graham.

He described the “hand of God” reference as a “bad taste joke”, adding: “These are light-hearted remarks made to a close colleague, it doesn’t mean anything.

“It doesn’t affect the way I reported this story later on.”

Sir Cliff sat open-mouthed and shook his head in disbelief as Mr Johnson gave his responses to the court.

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James Lankford, a Republican, and Democrat Jeanna Shaheen said the measure should be included in next year’s budget unless Andrew Brunson is freed.

In a joint statement, they said: “Turkish officials who participate in the detainment of any innocent American citizen should face international consequences, and the actions against Pastor Brunson, in particular, qualify as hostage-taking.”

Lankford and Shaheen sit on a sub-committee within the House Committee on Appropriations – a body responsible for laws allocating federal funds prior to expenditure from the US Treasury.

They went on to say: “We desire cooperation and strengthening ties between our countries, but the US Government has a responsibility to ensure the safety and welfare of its people.”

Numerous senior political figures have spoken out in defence of Mr Brunson in recent weeks and months, including US President Donald Trump.

Donald Trump tweeted earlier this week: “Pastor Andrew Brunson, a fine gentleman and Christian leader in the United States, is on trial and being persecuted in Turkey for no reason.

“They call him a spy, but I am more a spy than he is.

“Hopefully he will be allowed to come home to his beautiful family where he belongs!”

The 50-year-old is on trial in the Mediterranean city of Izmir, accused of links to two organisations which Ankara blames…

The couple first met when Williams, 37, attended an Elevate International retreat 40-year-old Johnson was hosting in Arizona last March.

Johnson, who works with sports teams including the Pittsburgh Steelers, told People magazine, “When we met, both of us were in very similar places on a personal level.

“Michelle was coming off the heels of a really bad relationship, and I was just in a place of despair as well.”

The couple say they are planning a short engagement and intend to marry this summer after Johnson proposed to Williams in Pebble Beach, California last month.

 

Williams, who embarked on a solo music career following a stint in the girl group Destiny’s Child, said she introduce Chad to her former bandmates Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland last summer.

Encouraging single people not to worry about being alone, she said: “Don’t lose hope in love.

 

“I do think you should not focus so much that if you’re not in love that you get depressed about it.

The ‘Say Yes’ singer added: “Just don’t lose hope.

“But definitely be doing what you can do to make yourself a better person for the person that possibly is on the way for you.”

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