Yemen: Saudi Arabia building up military near Yemen border
In February you were asked to pray for successful political negotiations to bring stability in the Yemen where armed men roam the streets and a few thousand Christians live. Saudi Arabia is now moving heavy military equipment to areas near its border with Yemen, raising the risk of being drawn into the worsening Yemeni conflict. The build-up follows a southward advance by Iranian-backed Houthi Shi'ite militants who took control of the capital, seized the central city of Taiz at the weekend and moved closer to the new southern base of US-supported President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The slide toward war in Yemen has made the country a crucial front in Saudi Arabia's region-wide rivalry with Iran, which Riyadh accuses of sowing sectarian strife through its support for the Houthis. The conflict risks spiralling into a proxy war with Shi'ite Iran backing the Houthis, whose leaders adhere to Shi'ite Islam, and Saudi Arabia and the other regional Sunni Muslim monarchies backing President Hadi.
Iraq: Raising awareness of the plight of Christians
A symbol targeting Christians has sparked a movement. IS painted the Arabic letter for ‘N’ (to indicate Nazarene or Christian) on the homes of believers in Mosul. Residents were then told to convert to Islam, pay a high tax, leave the area or be killed. The Voice of the Martyrs is serving Iraqi Christians who fled the terrorists by providing them with daily necessities and assessing their future needs. Many of these believers fled with only the clothes on their backs. To raise money to sustain work supporting Christians facing Islamic extremism they created an ‘i-am-n’ T-shirt featuring the same Arabic symbol that marked Christians’ homes in Mosul. Proceeds will help Christian refugees. In England a pianist, Carl Bahoshy, raised £33,000+ from 71 piano and organ recitals at churches, schools and cathedrals to raise money and awareness for Iraqi Christian refugees. 22 more concerts will follow. See
Mexico: Protestants imprisoned and displaced
Two Protestant cousins, Casto Hernández and Juan Placido Hernández, were imprisoned and then expelled from their community with their families after refusing to renounce their religious beliefs. Christian Solidarity Worldwide said they were imprisoned for 30 hours by village officials and the efforts to expel the men were led by local leaders. A campaign targeting the Protestant minority in this region of Mexico began in April 2014 when village authorities attempted to force Protestants to sign a document prohibiting them from belonging to any non-Roman Catholic religion. They refused, but village leaders signed the document and claimed it was binding on the community. Religious freedom violations are common in Hidalgo state where local leaders often try to force conformity to the majority religion. State officials tasked with upholding the law, including human rights protections enshrined in the Mexican constitution, rarely intervene to protect religious freedom.
Global: Unrest inside IS
Eleven medical students and doctors of Sudanese origin went to Syria to provide medical assistance to IS. Members of the group sent text messages saying they were treating hospital patients. An estimated 20,000 foreign fighters and supporters have flocked to Syria and Iraq to prop up IS. The Washington Post reported special treatment and better pay for the foreign recruits have made local fighters resentful. Foreign fighters live in cities where there’s less chance of airstrikes while Syrian fighters serve in more vulnerable rural outposts. IS is paying foreign fighters $800 a month, but Syrians half that amount causing mounting unrest in IS. Meanwhile nine members of IS were killed during infighting after they tried to flee over the Turkish border. It is not the first time that IS has killed its own members. They killed 120+ of their own fighters in two months, mostly foreigners trying to return home.
