Nigeria will hold a presidential election on 14 February and many are beginning to speculate on President Goodluck Jonathan’s second term bid and how political parties will address issues affecting Nigeria’s economy, terrorist and political challenges. In the coming weeks there will be quarrels over who is to be a delegate as well as many issues that may arise through primaries. Although a President can never solve all the problems in his country we can pray that the candidates for the next presidency will be men or women who have a heart to make positive differences to Nigeria’s future.

The first Egyptian citizen to attempt to change his legal religious identity from Muslim to Christian, Mohammed Hegazy, has been in jail for twelve months awaiting a verdict on separate misdemeanour charges, (due on 28 December). He faces five years in jail if an appeal court upholds his June conviction of ‘illegally filming anti-Christian demonstrations.’ His lawyer, Karam Ghobrial, said he is optimistic that the appeal court judge will overturn the conviction because no evidence was produced to prove the allegations against his client. Mr. Ghobrial contends that the real reason for the arrest and custody was because he is publicly known for a case he tried to open in 2007 to legalize his conversion to Christianity.

A week after the burning to death of Christian couple Shama and Shahzad in the Punjab, police accused Qaiser Ayub, 40, from Lahore of an alleged act of blasphemy. Mr Ayub is a Christian with a masters degree in computer sciences and a well-known blogger. He was accused of using derogatory language against the Holy Prophet in his blogs and of making threats. He went into hiding. He was found and arrested on 14 November. According to the chairman of Sharing Life Ministry Pakistan, his wife Amina Bibi and three children are in safe custody and will be taken care of while legal assistance for his case is organised. Qaiser Ayub remains in jail during the judicial investigation. Sources claim police are hiding the case and keeping the investigation secret while requesting the media to keep it in low profile. See also 

ISIS has released photographs showing children around ten years of age in soldier uniforms being trained to use assault rifles such as AK47s to kill people in Iraq and Syria. The children are also seen performing military drills, and marching before ISIS' black flag. The terror group has also been accused multiple times of carrying out extreme violence against children. Earlier this month, the vicar of Baghdad revealed that four Iraqi Christian children were beheaded by the terror group for refusing to convert to Islam. A CNN report in September shared the story of a 13-year-old boy who escaped a training camp and said that he witnessed militants carry out beheadings, stoning and a crucifixion. Chaldean-American businessman Mark Arabo said this week, ‘They are systematically beheading children, and mothers and fathers. The world hasn't seen an evil like this for a generation.

On Wednesday Dec.10th, the day after the CIA released a report on an American torture programme in Guantanamo Bay, the Australian Federal Attorney-General George Brandis was heckled by a former Guantanamo Bay detainee, David Hicks, at an awards ceremony in Sydney. ‘Hey, my name is David Hicks!’ he shouted, ‘I was tortured for five-and-a-half years in Guantanamo Bay in the full knowledge of your party! What do you have to say?’ As Senator Brandis walked off the stage at the Museum of Contemporary Arts, Mr Hicks told reporters Mr Brandis was a coward for not answering his question.

DRC has stunning landscapes and is rich in natural resources (literal goldmines are beneath the ground). It's extremely hot at certain times of year and rainy at others. But life is brutal. During recent weeks the town of Beni has been repeatedly attacked by militia. Photos of 100+ raped and mutilated corpses of women and children were too awful for the media to print. On Saturday night 37 people were massacred by militants in Oicha village in what the French call 'arme blanche', no guns – only machetes and knives. These attacks are becoming crueller and more frequent. In June an ‘Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict’ summit in London devised an international protocol, describing ways to bring rapists and their commanders to justice  and commitments to help sexual violence survivors to report crimes and get the support they need. Prayer is needed for international funding for this initiative. See also: 

The African Christian Democratic Party says it is shocked by South African State Security claims that they were not aware that IS was recruiting South Africans to fight in Iraq and Syria. Iraq’s Ambassador to South Africa, Dr Hashaim al-Alawi confirmed that IS is recruiting in South Africa and said he shared the information with the Department of International Relations and Cooperation. So far, he said three South Africans fighting for IS have died and their deaths were subsequently claimed to have been in car accidents. According to media reports, al-Alawi said recruitment and fund-raising for IS was being carried out by groups in South Africa positioning themselves as offering humanitarian assistance.

In an unprecedented joint intelligence bulletin, the FBI and Department of Homeland Security say they have intelligence that IS is trying to recruit people in the United States to target members of the military. They are using social media to track military personnel down. The FBI warned members of the US military to protect themselves by erasing all information on social media accounts that could help ‘violent extremists’ learn their identities. It's the strongest warning to date about possible attacks by IS. Brad Garrett, a former FBI agent, said, ‘We understand that you are young, you communicate through social media, but we are telling you that's how IS finds people they potentially target.’

In 2011 the Burma Army broke a 17-year ceasefire in Kachin State, displacing over 120,000 innocent civilians. Many fled to refugee camps where food and healthcare is limited and the risk of trafficking is high. In these places of despair, Partners Relief and Development has been working with local organisations to train and equip volunteers to lend a helping hand. The volunteers are themselves refugees helping their fellow refugees. Partners says these volunteers live by one rule, ‘Love your neighbour’. Already 150+ volunteers have been trained. Altogether they are caring for nearly 8,000 internally displaced person's . Those who need food receive it. Those who are sick are cared for. Community is brought into a thrown-together refugee camp in the midst of tensions as a coalition of 15 civil society organizations call for the army to withdraw. See also: 

Hundreds of extremist Islamists attacked a Christian school in Bangladesh in response to locals who were outraged by rumours stating the school was forcing Muslim children to convert to Christianity. The school welcomes children of all faiths. A spokesperson from Love Bangladesh Mission said the mob of about 200 people didn’t injure the children but 12 of its 14 members of staff were badly beaten. Millions of Bangladeshi students attend madrasas that were established in the 1970s, soon after Bangladesh became independent from Pakistan. There are two kinds- private Quomi madrasas and state-sponsored Alia madrasas. Some madrasas are hidden in secrecy and viewed with suspicion for their links with militant Islam. The furious mob’s ‘most wanted’ was Michael Robin Mondol, who is in charge of both the school and church. They were calling his name loudly, but the staff managed to hide him.