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Iraq

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Many churches in Iraq have been targeted by Islamists

“The attacks on Christians continue and the world remains totally silent. It’s as if we’ve been swallowed up by the night.” These are the words of a Christian in Iraq following bomb attacks at five churches in Kirkuk in the space of just one month.

Since the Gulf War of 1990-1 Iraqi Christians have increasingly been targeted by Muslim extremists, and after the US-led invasion of 2003 there was a huge surge in anti-Christian threats, kidnappings and murders. Much of the violence has been centred on church buildings and church leaders, a clear message to the Christians that they are being persecuted because of their faith. Many Christians have received messages telling them to convert to Islam, leave or be killed.

Although the anti-government insurgency that fuelled the violence has been brought under some sort of control, attacks on Christians have continued. Hundreds of thousands have fled their homes, mostly to other countries, reducing the Christian population to around a quarter of the size it was in 1990.

Iraqi Christians are now running out of safe havens, both in their homeland and in other countries. With Syria’s descent into the chaos of civil war, and the potential destabilising of both Lebanon and Jordan following the “Arab Spring”, many of those who fled Iraq to escape anti-Christian violence face the prospect of these countries falling into Islamist hands. But Iraq itself remains desperately dangerous for them.

Many Christians took refuge in the relatively stable autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan to the north, but they struggle to find work to support themselves. Furthermore, anti-Christian violence is beginning to occur even in this region. Some Christian businesses have been torched, and a young Christian man was kidnapped and held for ransom in a chilling echo of numerous incidents elsewhere in Iraq.

Meanwhile the anti-Christian bloodshed rages on in the major cities. In just a few days in 2012, the body of a Christian photographer was found riddled with bullets in Mosul, and two guards were killed when a bomb exploded near a church in Baghdad. Those responsible for such incidents are rarely prosecuted. Christians also suffer significant discrimination, marginalisation and injustice.

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Daily prayer

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  • Atrocities against Christians in Nigeria continue unabated. In Mubi, Adamawa state, various churches were attacked at the beginning of February; eight Christians were killed and three church buildings and a number of homes set ablaze. The violence drove Christians to stay at home after dark and to keep away from services. A month later, in Sheka, Kano state, 13 Christian factory workers were shot dead. In January a sheikh who claimed to be a commander of the militant Islamist group Boko Haram declared a ceasefire on its behalf, but in March a video was circulated in which one of its leaders, Abubakar Shekau, denied that it had made a truce with anyone. Pray that the Lord will be a wall of fire around His people (Zechariah 2:5) as they face such desperate dangers. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed 20 hours ago

  • On 20 January 2013 the Eritrean security police raided the homes of various Christians and arrested 50 people. One of them was a lady of 85, detained for hosting an underground church in her house. They joined hundreds of other believers currently held in Eritrean prisons, some of them in appalling conditions. Many more have fled the country to escape the persecution and have ended up in prison in Egypt, where they have been subjected to rape, beatings and starvation. Pray for all those Eritrean Christians suffering for their faith in their own country and beyond, that the Lord will be their help and shield (Psalm 33:20). Pray too for a prison ministry, supported by Barnabas, that visits and helps Eritrean Christians jailed in Egypt. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Fri, May 2013 00:00

  • Pray for the families of Abdoulaye and Abakachi, two converts from Islam to Christianity who were shot dead by Islamists in northern Cameroon. They were travelling with two other converts around Lake Chad on 19 February when their vehicle was stopped by four armed men who were looking for Abdoulaye. He was the leader of the converts from the Kotoko people group and had last year received a threat from militant Islamist group Boko Haram. The gunmen opened fire, killing Abakachi on the spot. Abdoulaye and another man were also shot; Abdoulaye later died of his injuries. He left a wife and 13 children; Abakachi left a wife and four children. Boko Haram had previously warned all Christian converts in northern Cameroon to return to Islam or “face Allah’s wrath”. Pray that the Lord will protect these vulnerable believers. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Thu, May 2013 00:00

  • Give thanks to the Lord for the courage and boldness of the Christians in North Korea who carry on witnessing for Christ despite the savage penalties imposed by the Communist regime. Those who share their faith or distribute Bibles risk torture and probable execution if they are caught, and their families may be dispatched to the country’s infamous labour camps to be starved or worked to death. Yet remarkably, the Church in North Korea is growing well, and some who have fled abroad and become Christians there have even gone back to share Christ with family and friends in their poverty and distress. Pray that God will keep His brave witnesses from harm and continue to add to their number (Acts 2:47). Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Wed, May 2013 00:00

  • Mohamed Ibaouene (36), a convert from Islam to Christianity, was convicted in July 2012 of “proselytising” in Algeria. The verdict was passed in his absence and without his knowledge. He was later sentenced to a year in prison and fined 50,000 dinars (£420; US$630). Mohamed challenged the conviction, and on 13 February 2013 the appeal court rescinded the jail term but doubled his fine. A Muslim colleague had brought the accusation against Mohamed after the latter refused to renounce Christ. Pray for justice for Mohamed and that the rights of Algerians to freedom of religion will be respected both by other citizens and by the law. Subscribe to the prayer points rss feed Tue, May 2013 00:00

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