Here is a report from contacts inside Afghanistan: “Two Afghan Christian brothers have been arrested and are in prison. Said Musa is in Kabul, and Assadullah is in Mazar-e-Sharif.

Assadullah was on trial on January 4th. He was told that either he return to Islam or be sentenced to death. He is alone and has no lawyer.  Pray for Assadullah! If you have any connections with Parliamentarians or Human Rights organizations in your country, please contact them on behalf of our helpless brother.

As for Said Musa, high officials have given the assurance that Said’s life is not in danger anymore as he has been moved. At least we know that Said´s case is being considered by top officials in the Afghan Government, including Karzai, He seems to be trying to find a way to judge him for "causing problems" and not for apostasy. Because of hardliners in his government, Karzai is trying to find a "diplomatic" way to release Said. There are letters coming from Said written in prison which show that he is doing well, is strong in his faith, and is witnessing.

Pray for Asadullah and Said Musa!

PRAY for PEACE and an END to the WAR
from New York Times, December 17, 2010

As the Obama administration reviews its strategy in Afghanistan, residents and even a Taliban commander say the surge of American troops this year has begun to set back the Taliban in parts of their southern heartland and to turn people against the insurgency - at least for now.

The stepped-up operations in Kandahar Province have left many in the Taliban demoralized, reluctant to fight, and struggling to recruit, a Taliban commander said in an interview this week. Afghans with contacts in the Taliban confirmed his description. They pointed out that this was the first time in four years that the Taliban had given up their hold of all the districts around the city of Kandahar, an important staging ground for the insurgency and the focus of the 30,000 American troops whom President Obama ordered to be sent to Afghanistan last December.

A member of the NATO-led force in Afghanistan was killed on Dec 19, taking the total number of foreign troops killed in 2010 to 700, by far the deadliest year of the war since the Taliban were toppled in 2001. A total of 521 foreign troops were killed in 2009, previously the worst year of the war, but operations against the Taliban-led insurgency have increased dramatically over the past 18 months. About 2,270 foreign troops have been killed since the war began, roughly two-thirds of them Americans.

Thanks for your prayer and intercession for this country!