Authorities in Indonesia's conservative Aceh province on Monday began tearing down several small Christian churches after hard-line Muslims demanded their closure, citing a lack of building permits. The move follows a spate of religious violence.
Tensions are high among the ethnically and religiously diverse population of Aceh Singkil, where last week a mob burned down a church, leaving one person dead and forcing thousands of Christians to flee the area. Armed police and military troops have been deployed to the area and evacuees have returned.
Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population and the vast majority of its citizens practice a moderate form of the religion. Aceh is its only province to implement Islamic Sharia law as it was granted autonomy as part of a 2005 peace agreement that ended decades of separatist violence.