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Thousands of civilians have been displaced following the occupation of Abyei Town by the Sudan Armed Forces at the weekend. Christian Solidarity International reported that 20,000 desperate civilians fled across the river Kiir and are sheltering under trees from the rain. The UN Mission in Sudan reports burning and looting by northern forces in Abyei Town and members of the UN Security Council have demanded that North Sudan withdraws its 5000-strong force from the area. Oil-rich Abyei is a disputed region with northern Sudan and newly-formed South Sudan both staking a claim for an area inhabited permanently by nine Ngok Dinka chiefdoms. Abyei is a key part of the comprehensive peace agreement that ended a civil war that ravaged the country since 1983.
Pray: for God to remove the spiritual atmosphere of war and destruction that remains over the area. (Ps.37:16,17)
More: http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2011/s11050147.htm
Tens of thousands of people have fled clashes in the oil-rich Abyei region on the border between north and south Sudan, leaving the town of Abyei almost empty, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said on Friday. Fighting broke out on Tuesday between fighters from the Misseriya tribe, which supports the government in Khartoum in the north, and the Ngok Dinka people who back the south which has voted to secede. At least 70 people were killed and two villages razed in two days of clashes north of Abyei, a spokesman for the army in the south said last week. ‘Since yesterday, tens of thousands of people have fled the town, leaving it mostly empty,’ MSF said Friday. On Thursday the United Nations ordered extra peacekeepers to the region. Abyei did not take part in a referendum in January in which southern Sudan voted to secede from the north. Pray: for peace and reconciliation between the Misseriya and Ngok Dinka people. (Ps.37:37) More: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hFn4kCI9kgrcOmdlb1-s8G-EzEZQ?docId=CNG.0f69b85278e292f4cec1b79291e88739.651
South Sudan is preparing to repatriate 1.5 million southerners from the north and Egypt ahead of a referendum due next January on whether the South should separate from the North. The proposals suggest returnees travel on trains, buses, and boats. Two million people have already returned to the south since the end of a two-decade conflict. (The great challenge for Christianity in the Sudan has been clashes where religion was a pivotal factor. The North with roughly two-thirds of Sudan's land and population is Muslim and Arabic-speaking. The South’s identity is indigenously African with Christian influences and a Western orientation.) If the report ‘Come Home to Choose’ is implemented thousands of people would arrive daily to an underdeveloped region struggling to cope with its current population. There are warnings of possible violence against southerners living in the north if the south votes to break away from the largely Muslim and Arab north. Pray: for God to help Sudan move towards establishing a peaceful identity. (Ps.25:4)
Barnabas Fund is to airlift 2,000 needy and vulnerable Christians stranded in Sudan to safety and a new life in South Sudan. The first of 12 chartered flights are due to leave Khartoum for Juba on September 7th. Approximately 800 women (two-thirds are widows and 1,200 children) will be transported from makeshift shelters in flood conditions to the South. They are among hundreds of thousands of people of Southern origin who remain trapped in Sudan, having been stripped of their citizenship after the South voted to secede. Many have now made their own way to South Sudan but the poorest and most vulnerable do not have the resources. As well as being impoverished, Christians in Sudan are extremely vulnerable, as Islamist President Omar al-Bashir has made it clear that they are not welcome and repeatedly declared his intention to make the next constitution 100% Islamic and strengthen sharia law.
Pray: for the most vulnerable to be able to reach their extended families in the South and that NGO’s will be able to help with their practical needs. (Ps.132:15)
Conditions in South Sudan's refugee camps continue to worsen this week with large refugee inflows and flooding from torrential rains. Health issues are a priority concern. In Unity state new arrivals have doubled to close to 60,000 - many arriving in a weak state. There is overcrowding in this limited strip of land that is already cut-off by rains. To address a sharp increase of bloody diarrhoea cases more wells are being drilled to secure clean drinking water, also jerry cans and buckets are being distributed to families with children under five. Efforts to increase awareness among the mostly young refugee population about hygiene, health and nutrition risks are also being implemented. Elsewhere in the Upper Nile State over 110,000 refugees constitute another critical challenge. Also most of the 40,000+ refugee population from Jammam are being located to other sites due to the Jammam camp being located on the edge of a malaria swamp.
Pray: for God’s mercy to provide the many aid agencies with all they need to alleviate suffering and prevent death. (2Sa.22:7
More: http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/unhcr-alarm-on-health-risks-for-refugees-in-south-sudan
South Sudan faces formidable challenges and fears of civil war and genocide as Christians are attacked and displaced. Also substantial oil resource wealth is tainted with threats of waste and corruption. We can intercede for South Sudan with some of the words from their new National Anthem:- 'Oh God! We praise and glorify you, Pour your grace upon Cush, The land of great warriors, origin of world’s civilization. - Oh Cush! Arise, shine, raise your flag with the guiding star, and Sing songs of freedom with joy. For peace, liberty and justice shall forever more reign. - Oh black warriors! Stand up in silence and respect. - Oh Eden! Land of milk and honey and hardworking people. Lord uphold South Sudan united in peace and harmony. The Nile valley, forests and mountains shall be a source of joy and pride. So Lord bless South Sudan!'
Pray: for the Lord to contend with men of violence, and prevent escalation into civil war. (Ps. 35:1 & 29:11)
More: http://www.themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=32559
It is two months since South Sudan’s peaceful secession from the North after decades of civil war, but violence in the border regions has flared since May. In a split still lacking clarity over border demarcations and the division of resources, several reports have outlined escalating tensions that have killed scores of people and pushed tens of thousands to leave their homes. A report by the International Crisis Group (ICG) says the lack of political inclusivity and the heavy-handed approach of President Omar al-Bashir’s ruling National Congress Party to crush rebels and dissent could lead to a civil war and destabilize the whole region. The think-tank says conflict is spiralling out of control following Sudan’s attempts to forcefully disarm and dissolve the northern branch of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement that fought against Khartoum for autonomy with the South for years. Sudan’s refusals to pull troops out of the contested Abyei region and listen to marginalized people in eastern states and western Darfur could lead to mass unrest.
Pray: for opposing groups to be able to communicate over political and economic differences. (Eph.4:3)
The Sudan Council of Churches is scrutinising out-of-country referendum registration processes in Kenya, Uganda and Egypt, while also reporting that on Sunday the police stormed their offices. Seven vans with 200 police broke down doors and searched the building for ‘suspected hidden weapons.’ These events happen as Africa's biggest country is preparing to vote in a referendum to determine if the Muslim North and Christian South should separate. See: Because of fears that the referendum results could send Sudan back into another civil war; a global Day of Prayer for Sudan on December 5th has been called by The World Evangelical Alliance. It is believed that a) the South is not prepared to receive the anticipated influx of refugees from the North. b) the government in the North cannot guarantee Christians safe passage South. WEA’s prayer requests are for a peaceful and fair referendum with the outcome accepted by all involved. Pray: for God’s grace to be so poured out in Sudan that the referendum would be a beacon to the world of what God can do. (Is.59:1)
Sixteen-year-old Hiba Anglo recently escaped from a gang of Muslims who kidnapped her last year, but it may be a long time before she recovers from the trauma. The kidnappers beat, raped and tried to force her to convert from Christianity to Islam. ‘They did many bad things to me,’ she said, as tears streamed down her face. ‘Several times I was warned if I don’t convert to Islam I risk losing my life. The man who imprisoned me did not allow me to pray Christian prayers and insulted my family as ‘infidels’. Hiba said that she gave the impression she had converted to Islam and was left unguarded. She fled and begged a motorist to take her to her home two hours away. Her mother said when she went to the police to open a kidnap case, officers said, ‘If you want your daughter back you should become a Muslim’.
Pray: for Hiba’s complete recovery from the trauma and for God to strengthen and protect the Sudanese believers.(Is.41:10-11)
More: http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/sudan/article_115849.html
The UN is preparing for a possible 2.8 million displaced people if fighting breaks out over southern Sudan's independence referendum. In two weeks voters in the south decide whether to remain with the Khartoum-based north, or more likely, to secede and create the world's newest country. Tensions are high over the vote. Aircraft from the Islamic northern Sudanese military have bombed areas in the Christian south or near disputed north-south borders in recent weeks. The UN report said both the northern and southern militaries had been rearming and many southerners possessed guns and light weapons. In a ‘vision’ statement posted on the internet, the Muslim Brotherhood of Sudan said allowing South Sudan to be independent was a crime. They vowed to punish Christians if this takes place. The people are worried that whatever the referendum results a civil war could be ignited. If the South remains part of Sudan the voting accuracy will be questioned. Pray: against rigging of votes, a peaceful outcome and for Christians to have no fear for the future. (Ps.112:7)