Pope Francis will be making a pilgrimage to Israel from May 24th to 26th commemorating 50 years since a meeting between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras. He will meet with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of the Orthodox bishops, Jordan's King and Queen, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Israeli President Shimon Peres and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. However death threats to Arabs and Christians written in front of a Roman Catholic Church office in Jerusalem ahead of the visit  have some officials alarmed. A Christian persecution watchdog group said it is unlikely a direct attack on the pope will be attempted. The Office of the Assembly of Bishops, Notre Dame of Jerusalem said that it found Hebrew writing on a column outside its building reading ‘Death to Arabs, Christians and all those who hate Israel.’ Heads of churches are preparing to respond.

The government of Sri Lanka has created a religious police unit to settle disputes arising from increasing intolerance against minorities by Buddhist groups. However, many Christians and Muslims in Sri Lanka think the new unit is disingenuous as it answers only to the Ministry of Buddha Sasana and Religious Affairs, which is tasked with furthering Buddhism. Members of Sri Lanka's Christian clergy said the government's decision to help solve religious disputes was misleading since many Buddhist nationalists are already under the protection of the Sri Lanka government. Last year Sri Lanka's Christian communities were targeted by vigilante groups acting on behalf of the country's Buddhist Sinhalese majority. These groups have destroyed, or closed down numerous churches, notably Evangelical congregations whose preaching is perceived as a threat to Sri Lanka's Buddhist majority. ‘The special unit will not solve the crisis we are experiencing,’ Rev. Emmanuel Sebamalai, a Tamil Catholic priest and human rights activist said.

A 60 page Wesley Mission report compiled from the results of a survey and interviews with Australian disability carers  found the role of a carer is taxing and takes its toll on even the most robust, loving people. Key findings were • life is extremely complex and stressful • almost all carers interviewed had personal health issues, relationship concerns and/or mental health complications • lifestyles of carers is completely focused on and dedicated to the wellbeing of those they care for, resulting in them putting themselves in ‘second place’ • there’s not enough time to combine caring responsibilities with non-caring responsibilities • carers expressed high levels of concerns in relation to securing a meaningful and safe future for those they care for • despite all the stress, carers are very resilient - while stress, strain and sacrifice are all part of caring for someone with disability  •carers showed a determination to provide the best care they could.

More Iranian Christians are immigrating to Germany than ever before to escape religious persecution in their home country. The Guardian reports that though East Berlin has been considered one of the most ‘godless’ locations in history the city is now attracting thousands of foreign Christians to the area. The Iranian immigrants must pay to enter the country illegally; some pay up to $30,000 to make the trip with a fake passport. They create fake names and start their lives over in new churches. One woman who remains in Iran said that she was harassed and abused for her faith. The woman was imprisoned for putting up a Christmas tree in her home and workplace, receiving more than 70 lashes from her jailers. ‘I want Iran to have respect for my perspective, about what religion I choose’ the woman, who wished to only be identified by her first name Afsaneh, said.

Palestinian sources say a 5-week deadline is in place for forming government between rival Palestinian factions and the new PA unity government will be announced before the end of May. The government will consist of only 15 or 16 ministers  who will not be affiliated with any Palestinian group. The Palestinian daily Al-Quds reported that none of the ministers currently serving in the Hamas government headed by Ismail Haniyeh would join the unity government and a few ministers serving in the West Bank government, headed by Rami Hamdallah, would become part of the coalition. Fatah leader Azzam al-Ahmed is expected to travel to the Gaza Strip shortly for talks with Hamas leaders on the composition of the unity government as agreed between the two sides last month. PA sources said that Hamas has ‘displayed a large degree of flexibility’ regarding the issue of the formation of a ‘national consensus government’ headed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

The Voice of the Martyrs has distributed Action Packs to persecuted Christians in countries like Iraq, Pakistan and Sudan for many years. Now Syrian Christians have asked for care packages to share with their Muslim neighbours. The packages, which are filled or sponsored by Christians in the United States, contain clothing, bedding, toiletries and other items of need. Front-line workers in and around Syria believe that sharing these packs with Syrian Muslim refugees demonstrates Christ’s love for them. They believe this will help open the door for the gospel. VOM hope to fill and send 10,000 outreach packs from Individuals and Churches.

This is an ongoing story with daily developments. Prayer-Alert is prepared 24 hours in advance of publication therefore information, whilst true at time of writing, could be superseded. The U.S. military is flying manned intelligence and surveillance missions over Nigeria in hopes of locating the kidnapped mainly Christian schoolgirls, many of whom were shown in a video from Boko Haram to be praying to Allah amid reports the  terror group’s leader was negotiating with the government. There are 50+ U.S. military personnel based at the Nigerian Embassy to help advise and assist the search for the missing girls. The teams have expertise in communications, logistics, civil affairs and intelligence. Britain has sent a mixed team, led by the Foreign Office, with components from the Metropolitan Police, the Ministry of Defence, the Department for International Development and the intelligence agencies. Rescuing the girls is a Nigerian-led operation and any input from international teams will be advisory only.  See also BBC news Africa.

Syria's ‘lost generation’ are children whose innocence was stolen in the Syrian conflict. It is not unusual to see a baby-faced boy with his Kalashnikov rifle balanced over his shoulder. Families have to depend on children for tasks usually performed by men. A mother of four said, ‘Their childhood has gone.’ Barrel bombs have had a devastating effect, especially in Aleppo, the city with the largest concentration of Christians. They are made from oil drums packed with explosives and bits of metal and are tossed over the sides of helicopters. Their indiscriminate devastation has forced tens of thousands to flee Aleppo this year. Many refugees have fled to Jordan. In the refugee camps in Amman, two teachers set up schools to help the children keep up their education. Even in adverse weather, the eager children huddle together, hungry to learn.

The village of Aab Barik was buried by a tide of rock and mud last Friday after heavy rains. The government confirmed 300 deaths, and has given up looking for 2,100 missing. Hundreds of homes are now underneath 300ft of mud, and families are staying in tents from aid agencies. Villagers spoke of their grief at losing husbands, wives and children as their homes were destroyed in moments. Andrew Morris, chief of Unicef for the Northern Region of Afghanistan, said, 'The whole area has been declared a burial ground; our staff described it in some places to be as deep as 50 metres of mud. Our first priority is getting water supplies going and we are urgently looking at sanitation. Then we have to help children to overcome this traumatic event. We have got to get them back to school as soon as we can. That is part of the return to normalcy.'

Journalists and many on the wrong side of Mahmud Ahmadinejad fled Iran after his contentious re-election as president in 2009. When the 2013 election brought the relatively moderate Hassan Rohani to power, "A" took the opportunity to return. But while the political atmosphere has opened up in the Islamic republic under Rohani, it apparently is not enough to shield returnees from harassment, or worse. Some like A, who declined to give his name, have been subjected to hours of interrogation. Others have been arrested for their role in the postelection unrest in 2009. Speaking in New York in September to a group of Iranian-Americans, Rohani said no one had the right to prevent Iranians from visiting their homeland. ‘Iranians are the owners of Iran,’ he said. ‘Iran belongs to all Iranians.’ A says he's gone through tens of hours of intensive interrogations by the intelligence office of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.