Nicaragua’s Ortega-Murillo regime has escalated its crackdown on religious freedom by banning Bibles from entering the country at border crossings, according to reports from regional media. Notices posted at Costa Rican bus terminals warn travelers that Bibles, along with magazines and newspapers, are prohibited items—placing Scripture on the same list as weapons and drones. The move comes as Nicaragua continues to suppress independent media and tighten state control, following years of targeted persecution against the Catholic Church, whose leaders have been jailed, exiled, or silenced for resisting government abuses.

While the regime has long targeted churches as institutions, restricting access to the Bible marks a chilling new phase—one aimed directly at the Word of God itself. International watchdogs, including the U.S. State Department and USCIRF, have already designated Nicaragua a Country of Particular Concern for severe religious freedom violations. This development echoes the growing global hostility toward Christianity foretold in Scripture (Amos 8:11; John 15:18–20). As regimes move to silence truth, the ban on Bibles in Nicaragua stands as a sobering sign of the times—and a call for believers to remain watchful, prayerful, and steadfast.

SOURCE: ICC