Three Christian men who have been imprisoned in Ethiopia for two years on false accusations of burning down a church have had their appeal hearing delayed yet again.

Tibebu Mekuria, Dawit Jemberu and Belete Tilahun already saw their hearing postponed several times over the summer,  Open Doors reports.

They were accused of burning down a church building in May 2014 and sentenced to nine years in 2015. They have also been ordered to pay damages of more than £35,000. Two of the men are single but Tilahun is married with three children and owns a home which he risks losing.

"I am worried that my family will be thrown out onto the streets. They want to destroy my life and the property I have laboured for all my life," he told a visitor earlier this year, according to Open Doors, which is calling for prayers for the men.

Earlier this year, their case was raised in Parliament.

Tom Brake, Liberal Democrat MP for Carshalton and Wallington in Surrey, asked the Foreign Secretary to make representations to the Ethiopian government.

James Duddridge responded on behalf of the Foreign Office, saying: "We are aware of the ongoing court case of Tibebu Mekuria, Dawit Jemberu and Belete Tilahun, who were convicted of burning down the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Gulema Iyesus in June 2015.

"As all three are still pursuing their appeal case through the courts in Ethiopia, with their final appeal hearing set for the 29 June, it would be inappropriate to comment on their case at this time."

That was in the summer, and their case still has not been heard with the latest postponement this week. 

Ethiopia is at Number 18 on the Open Doors persecution watch list. Nearly half the population is Orthodox Christian and a third is Muslim.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is finding itself increasingly challenged by the growing number of evangelical Protestants, sometimes described in Orthodox media as "newcomers" and "false prophets".

The three men are being held in Debiremarkos prison, a harsh environment with a history of torture and killing. They are responding to the repeated delays by expressing their trust in God, according to Open Doors, and using the time they have their to evangelise their fellow inmates.