Asia

Displaying items by tag: Asia

Friday, 07 July 2023 09:42

Indonesia: challenges to Christians

Church building in Indonesia is subject to onerous requirements, including the requirement to get signatures from 60 neighbouring households - each of which must be non-Christian - before permission to construct a church building can be granted. Often Islamist groups engage in lobbying local authorities and communities to try to prevent churches from being built, despite the support for religious freedom voiced by the central government. Pray that Christians will be as wise as serpents and innocent as doves in navigating these difficulties (Matthew 10:16). President Widodo’s government successfully dissolved two hard-line Islamist organisations, Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia and Islamic Defenders Front. However, a new group has now emerged - the Islamic Reformist Movement, funded by Saudi Arabia. Hostility from Muslims towards Christians varies across Indonesia, a vast country comprising thousands of islands. Even if the central government supports Christians, provincial and local authorities may be hostile.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 07 July 2023 09:25

Israel: anger reignited

The roots of violence, despair and hatred between Palestinians and Israelis goes deep, generated by possession of the land. The latest Israeli attack on the West Bank targeted the ‘unified command centre for the Jenin Brigade’ which has been at the heart of twelve months of escalating violence (over fifty recent attacks have come from there). Bulldozers drove through the Palestinian refugee camp which was also attacked by aircraft, reviving a tactic it halted two decades ago. Eight Palestinians were killed and one Israeli. For over a year, army raids have been linked to a series of deadly attacks by Palestinians against Israelis and rampages by Jewish settlers against Palestinian villages. Israel said it was striking terrorist infrastructure targets and armed gunmen in the Jenin camp and shared documents showing Jenin as a ‘stronghold of terrorist activity’ where half the people belong to militant groups. However, the scale of the attack on Jenin has drawn strong criticism from many sourcres.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 07 July 2023 09:19

Syria: relief finally arrives

Ten UN relief trucks carrying aid finally reached northwest Syria four months after huge earthquakes rocked the region. This was the first aid convoy to cross from government territory into a rebel-held enclave since aid deliveries became a political pawn following the disaster. Pray for the 15 million Syrians needing help to survive, and for God to comfort an estimated 8.8 million people affected by the earthquakes; they may have a roof over their heads, but their hearts remain unsettled. Every new aftershock triggers a flashback and trauma. No one knows when the earth will stop moving. Pray for the global church as it continues to offer help and hope. Syrian Christians have been helping earthquake survivors from day one. Believers are telling people about God’s love, which their consistent presence shows is real.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 29 June 2023 22:26

Iran: ‘Great Awakening' exploding

Over many years we have prayed for Iranians to receive Christ as their saviour. Christianity is illegal: yet despite facing torture, imprisonment, and execution, millions are forsaking Islam and converting to Christianity despite the regime targeting believers, spreading false information, and encouraging a negative opinion about Christianity. The Family Research Council, suggests that new Christians' witness to others is mostly shared in quiet conversations, encouraged by low-profile online Bible studies, and affirmed by visions, dreams, and miraculously answered prayers. Recent Christian converts are enthusiastically communicating about their changed lives with friends and loved ones. Their discreet, persistent witness accounts for an extraordinary number of new Iranian believers meeting in small house churches. Those involved with house churches are convinced that there are several million Christian believers there in a mass exodus from Islam. The churches of Muslim Background Believers lack clergy and church buildings. It consists of self-starting disciples and small house churches.

Published in Praise Reports

Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) recruit, train and use children as fighters. It is a war crime and a human rights abuse to use children in armed conflicts. Israel is experiencing increased terrorist aggression in the West Bank, and Palestinian children are being killed. On Monday Ahmed Saqer died during a Palestinian and IDF gunbattle. Palestinian media said he was throwing rocks. Palestinian terror groups described Ahmed as a ‘fighter’. Could he have been throwing deadly munitions not rocks? On his TikTok account is a video of him posing next to a PIL flag. Another video showed a dozen pipe bombs inside his home. Regardless of what he was throwing, it was a difficult situation for Israeli forces to deal with. On Tuesday, two Palestinian teens died when an explosive device they were carrying detonated. A third person was critically wounded. There are many more incidents of children dying in battles.

Published in Worldwide

Millions who survived Myanmar's strongest cyclones are struggling to rebuild their lives. Aid trickled in until 8 June, when Myanmar's army rulers banned transport for aid groups operating in the area, making it impossible for them to deliver aid. ‘The move has turned an extreme weather event into a man-made catastrophe.’ said Human Rights Watch. Cyclone Mocha hit in May, killing hundreds. Families are reeling from dwindling aid a month after their homes were destroyed. ‘There isn't enough water or food and finding them has become much harder with the monsoon under way’, says Aye Phyu. ‘It's been raining all week. We struggle every day. The children are studying in a school with no roof. When the storm hit all the houses collapsed. There is nowhere to stay.’ Only a fraction of homes have been repaired after the storm destroyed over 2,000 villages and 280,000 homes in Rakhine state, where 78% live below the poverty line.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 29 June 2023 21:12

Syria: poor man’s cocaine

Built on the ashes of ten years of war, an illegal drug industry run by associates and relatives of President Bashar al-Assad has grown into a multibillion-dollar operation, eclipsing Syria’s legal exports and turning the country into the world’s newest narcostate. Its flagship product, captagon, is an addictive, inexpensive amphetamine, popular in Saudi Arabia and now being found in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Syria’s operations include workshops manufacturing the pills, packing plants to conceal them for export and smuggling networks to spirit them abroad. The production and distribution is overseen by the Fourth Armoured Division of the Syrian Army, commanded by Maher al-Assad, the president’s brother. Hezbollah's fighters have played a key role in helping the Syrian government turn the tide in the civil war and have long been accused of involvement in drug trafficking. The UK and US have imposed sanctions on those responsible for the captagon trade, which could be worth $57 billion. See

Published in Worldwide

Arab reports indicate a Palestinian terror group based in Syria with ties to Iran and Hezbollah is actively preparing for a new series of attacks inside Israel. Speaking from Syria, Fadi Malach, commander of the Galilean Wolves, said, ‘We are in the midst of preparations for a series of additional operations inside Israel, despite Israel’s warning to Hezbollah, who might go on another adventure.’ Malach also said that his group was responsible for a roadside bombing at the Megiddo Junction in northern Israel on 13 March, which injured an Israeli motorist. The man who planted the bomb was subsequently killed by Israeli soldiers while driving back towards the Lebanese border. Explosives and a weapon were found in the vehicle, and the terrorist wore a suicide bomb belt. Malach said Galilean Wolves have been active since 2004, in an effort to liberate Galilee in the first stage, and they are not co-opted by Iran.

Published in Worldwide

With the budget passed, the coalition has much to focus on apart from judicial reform. Pray for God’s priorities to be the government’s priorities, and ask God to show the various ministers how to work in unity as they deal with issues. Ask God to place the coalition's reins firmly in prime minister Netanyahu’s hands, and use his partners to keep him turning Israel onto a more biblical path, while removing any ungodly advisers from him. Ask God to anoint finance minister Smotrich to win the war against Israel's high cost of living and show every ministry how to reduce wasteful spending and increase the effectiveness of their budgets. May national security minister Ben-Gvir use the budget dedicated to reinforce and encourage Israel's police force to do just that - while also removing all unrighteousness from its ranks. And finally, ask God to help the housing industry to make affordable housing readily available. See

Published in Worldwide

The ongoing attacks on Manipur’s Christians are labelled 'religious cleansing'. Over 317 churches, 70 church schools, 6,137 Christian homes and Christian administrative buildings had been destroyed by 3 May, according to an assessment by the Federation of Indian American Christian Organisations (FIACONA). Other groups estimated 45,000 people have been displaced in what FIACONA is calling ‘the worst anti-Christian violence India has ever seen’. The BJP government used a decades-old underlying ethnic tension between two ethnic groups to create the deadliest violence against Christians, instigated by Hindutva nationalists. It is ‘target killings by government forces’. Events in Manipur follow worsening conditions for Christians across India. Kerala’s Catholic bishops’ council conducted prayers and a candle-lit procession on 6 June, demanding peace should be established in Manipur immediately. Bishops, priests, and laity participated in the meeting and procession.

Published in Worldwide