Those Loving and Peaceful Muslims

[Rick W]

I look forward to my time here.

I did not realive that I was being vague in any of my posts. Rather, I chose my words very carefully as to make sure that I do not leave any ambiquity in what I say.

I seek to ask questions - at times that might challenge the status-quo, but it is through asking that we are able to find answers.

I also believe that the God we serve is not threatened by questions, and as such neither should God's followers be either.

:smt023

Asking is good. And as you said it's the only way to get answers. I mean no offense though and I hope you don't take my meaning the wrong way but the answers you get may not be what you're looking for. Some here explain themselves as "wanting to know", which is quite noble, but refuse the answer in favor of continued rebuttal with the sole purpose to prove the anwers wrong hiding behind a false outward display of nobility of "wanting to learn". Then I wonder why the question was asked in the first place or was the motivation simply to confront no matter what the answer/s may be.
Is it good to question an answer? Sure, why not. But again, if the motivation is to argue then no answer can or will suffice.

I don't question your motives but simply state what I've seen from experience with the majority of claims of "coming here to learn". Again, take no offense but keep this in mind when you really are posting to find a certain truth you are interested in. And hopefully, prayfully you'll get an honest answer to an honest question.

I've known one religion in particular that frowns on questions. In fact I've talked personally with a few who were excommunicated for doing so. It wasn't God that was threatened but those who held the "higher places" in that religion's "church" that were made uncomfortable but the inquiry.

 

[Solo]

Persecution is wrong period, regardless of who is doing it.

Nor does it do any good to villify any group. It is important to remember the Brothers and Sisters in chains, and to pray for those that hold the chains.

I agree. I give the current events as they relate to Christians being persecuted by the Muslims so that they can be prayed for and assisted first. After that we must pray for the Muslims who are under bondage of God's enemy, satan. Any assistance that you can give in prayer for the Christians that I post articles of, as well as for their attackers would be greatly appreciated and expected. Most of those who are being persecuted in the articles that I post are ex-Muslims who have been released from the enemy's chains, and have come to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Pray for them.

 

[Solo]

Iraq Now World's "Second-Worst Persecutor" of Christians
Added: Jan 4th, 2007 12:34 AM

By BosNewsLife News Center

WASHINGTON/BAGHDAD (BosNewsLife) -- Iraq was named Wednesday, January 3, as the world's "second-worst persecutor of Christians" after North Korea in an influential report expected to underscore concern about sectarian violence in the war-torn county.

Iraq was among ten countries that received the annual "Hall of Shame Awards" in a report issued by the Washington-DC based human rights group International Christian Concern (ICC) with website http://www.persecution.org.

ICC, which is closely monitored by US-law makers investigating trends in religious persecution, said it decided to include Iraq as "one of the unintended consequences of the war in Iraq was to bring more pressure on the Christian communities there." Church observers estimate that Iraq's already small pre-war Christian community of roughly 750,000 has been reduced to about 450,000 people as many have fled the country.

MEDIA ATTENTION

There have been fears that the recane execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein cound incraese revenge attacks against Christians, who militants view as being close to the US-led coalition in Iraq.

"Much of the media attention has focused on bloodshed between Sunni and Shiite [Muslims] but hardly any coverage has been given to the disproportionately large number of brutal attacks on the small Christian minority," ICC explained. North Korea remained on top of its list of persecutors, amid reports that about 200,000 North Koreans, many of them Christians, are held in the country’s notorious slave labor camps for allegedly undermining the regime.

North Korea's Stalinist system of carrying out communism is based on "total devotion" of the individual to an ideology promoted by the late leader Kim Il Sung and his successor and son, Kim Jong Il, according to observers who visited the isolated nation

RADICAL ISLAM

Among other concerns mentioned by ICC is what it described as "radical Islam gaining a foothold in the Horn of Africa through the anarchy in Somalia." The group said this "contributed to a sharp rise in violence against Christians in Somalia and Ethiopia. It remains to be seen what effect the recent defeat of the Union of Islamic Courts in Somalia will have on the region."

ICC’s President Jeff King said, "Persecution must and can be fought. Religious persecution must be named and shamed on an international level. Journalists need to speak out about Islam’s mistreatment of other religions, while concerned individuals should get involved in the fight by contacting their elected representatives and by calling embassies and requesting fair treatment for Christians overseas."

In order, ICC ranked the world’s worst persecutors as: North Korea, Iraq, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Iran, Eritrea, China, Vietnam, and Pakistan. The report was issued on the ICC website http://www.persecution.org. (With BosNewsLife's Stefan J. Bos).

Copyright 2007 BosNewsLife. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without our prior written consent.

Retrieved from http://www.christianpersecution.info/ne ... hristians/

 

[Solo]

Librarian guides underground worship movement in Africa
Dec 27, 2006
By Emily Peters
Baptist Press
WEST AFRICA (BP)--It’s the stuff superheroes are made of.

Clark Kent wasn’t just a reporter. Peter Parker didn’t just deliver pizzas. Mary Malone* isn’t just a librarian.

For more than 20 years, Malone has been sorting books and helping the students at a seminary in West Africa research their assignments. But her after-hours gig involves a bit more risk.

That’s when Fulani believers come to her house seeking guidance for their underground worship communities, which are popping up everywhere despite harsh new Muslim laws assigning the death penalty to Christian converts.

The Fulani people are traditionally quiet, nomadic cattle herders known for producing beef and milk and for spreading Islam throughout the region. Most live in isolated cattle camps deep in the bush. Few attend school. Even fewer are Christians.

“Most churches here have little interest in ministering to the Fulani because they see them as just too resistant to the Gospel,†Malone explained. She invited the Fulani pastors-in-training to her home for an informal support group.

The Fulani have no word for “librarian†in their native language of Fulfulde, but Malone quickly earned a more fitting title. She became their “madujo,†which means mother.

“In the whole nation I don’t think we could find a mother like her,†said Abdul*, one of the first Fulani pastors Malone mentored. “She prays for us seriously. She can joke and play with us. She can advise us spiritually with family. She knows how to settle us. She always wants our ministries progressing.â€Â

With Malone’s guidance, those few Fulani started taking the Gospel to their own people. A few converts became a few more.

Then the region erupted in riots. People of different religions and ethnic groups clashed over the government's installation of Islamic regulations, called Shari’ah law. Many were slain. Rioters burned the pastor school to the ground, along with churches and many homes of the Fulani converts.

Malone remembers her thoughts as she returned to her library to find all the books still smoldering, charred beyond use.

“I used to feel guilty about doing this ministry when my job was to be a librarian,†she said. “After that, I changed my way of thinking. I realized books are temporary. It’s the people that last.â€Â

But the new religious tension forced some changes in the Fulani ministry.

“We’ve had to go more undercover,†Malone said.

She can’t visit the new Fulani believers at their homes anymore. Some of them lost children when their grass and stick homes were torched. Others have been detained without reason.

“If she visits them, they are going to have more problems with their neighbors and the Muslim brothers,†Abdul said.

So Abdul and his Fulani brothers launched their own evangelism plan, forming a structure for their worship communities. Small groups gather in homes for worship and Bible study. Sometimes larger groups assemble, but spontaneously, and not in the same place twice.

Two hundred believers before the riots multiplied to 3,000, and now the network has swelled so large Malone can’t keep count.

“It’s very rare that a Fulani becomes a Christian and then within a week or two doesn’t bring someone else,†she said.

These days, Malone focuses her ministry on about 10 core leaders. Nearly every day when she finishes at the library, she counsels them and trains them in new ways to minister to their worship groups -- not officially called churches to avoid persecution.

Each of the leaders then imparts that training to fellowship leaders, who pass it on to their sub-leaders.

“We now have worship communities spread over 70,000 square miles,†Malone said.

She admits that sometimes she asks God why He brought all this to a librarian, but she has realized God can use any job for His glory.

“God has gifted each of us with interests, skills and abilities that He expects us to use creatively for His purpose,†she said.
--30--
*Names changed for security reasons. To learn more about missions in West Africa, visit GoWestAfrica.org.

Retrieved from http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/bpnews.asp?ID=24677

 

[jgredline]

Solo

Islam is a religion of peace.......Check it out..... http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/

http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/

 

[Solo]

Muslim Cabbie Charged With Running Over Students After Religious Dispute

NASHVILLE, Tenn.  A Muslim cabdriver from Somalia ran over two college students near Vanderbilt University after getting into an argument with them about religion, police said.

Ibrahim Ahmed, 37, a driver for United Cab, picked up two men near the Vanderbilt campus early Sunday morning, Capt. Mike Alexander of the Nashville Police Department said, referring to the incident report.

The two men, reportedly college students from Ohio who were visiting Nashville, were on their way back to the campus.

A conversation about religion ensued between the driver and his two fares. The local FOX affiliate in Nashville confirmed from a friend and fellow co-worker that Ahmed is a Sunni Muslim from Somalia.

At some point, according to the police, the two men exited the cab, and the cabbie also got out. They paid him his fare, and then they exchanged words.

According to the incident report, Ahmed then returned to his cab as the students fled on foot. Ahmed then allegedly drove across a parking lot, jumped a curb and struck the two men.

One of the students, identified as Jeremy Invus, was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center with critical injuries. The other passenger, Andrew Nelson, avoided the cab.

Hospital spokeswoman Kathy Rivers told FOX News that Invus is recuperating and does not want to talk to the media about the incident.

Ahmed, charged with assault and attempted homicide, is being held on $300,000 bond. He also was also charged with theft because police said the license plate on his cab was listed as stolen.

"We are working with the police to see what happened," United Cab manager Cherrie Machado said.

"I don't believe he will be working here anymore, but that is up to the licensing cab board  whether they will pull his permit  and the owners of the company."

Machado said she would not feel "comfortable" to have Ahmed back working at the company. She noted that he also teaches English as a second language next door to the cab company.

FOX news' Sharon Fain and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,252783,00.html

 

[Solo]

Female Pakistani Minister Shot Dead for Refusing to Wear Veil
Tuesday, February 20, 2007

By Devika Bhat and Zahid Hussain

Zilla Huma Usman rushed to operating room at hospital in Gujranwala.
A Pakistani minister and woman’s activist was shot dead Tuesday by an Islamic extremist for refusing to wear the veil.

Zilla Huma Usman, the minister for social welfare in Punjab province and an ally of President Pervez Musharraf, was killed as she was about to deliver a speech to dozens of party activists, by a “fanaticâ€Â, who believed that she was dressed inappropriately and that women should not be involved in politics, officials said.

Usman, 35, was wearing the shalwar kameez worn by many professional women in Pakistan, but did not cover her head.

The attack happened in Gujranwala, 120 miles southeast of Islamabad, where the minister’s office is based. As Usman, 35, stepped out of her car – where she was greeted by her co-workers throwing rose petals - the attacker pulled out a pistol and fired a single shot at close range, hitting her in the head. She was airlifted to hospital in the provincial capital Lahore, but died soon afterwards.

The gunman, Mohammad Sarwar, was overpowered by the minister’s driver and arrested by police. A stone mason in his mid 40s, he is not thought to belong to any radical group but is known for his fanaticism. He was previously held in 2002 in connection with the killing and mutilation of four prostitutes, but was never convicted due to lack of evidence.

Sarwar appeared relaxed and calm when he told a television channel that he had carried out God’s order to kill women who sinned. “I have no regrets. I just obeyed Allah’s commandment,†he said, adding that Islam did not allow women to hold positions of leadership. “I will kill all those women who do not follow the right path, if I am freed again,†he said.

“He is basically a fanatic,†Raja Basharat, the Punjab Law Minister, said. “He is against the involvement of women in politics and government affairs.†A police statement added: “He considers it contrary to the teachings of Allah for a woman to become a minister or a ruler. That’s why he committed this action.â€Â

“He killed her because she was not observing the Islamic code of dress. She was also campaigning for emancipation of women,†said Nazir Ahmad, a local officer.

Usman, a married mother of two sons, joined the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League after being elected in 2002. A strong supporter of the President’s policy of “enlightened moderation†- designed to tackle extremism - she was appointed to her current post in December last year according to her government biography.

In April 2005, she encouraged the holding of a mini-marathon involving female competitors in Gujranwala – an event which led to riots after police intervened to stop armed Islamic activists from disrupting the race. She also ran a small fashion business from her base in the town.

Shaukat Aziz, the Prime Minister, paid tribute to the minister, describing her as a “committed and dedicated politicianâ€Â. “During her short span as minister, she took several steps for the welfare of the people of Punjab,†he said. Zobaida Jalal, the federal Minister for Social Welfare, added that Usman’s death was an “unbearable loss to the cause of women rights and their empowermentâ€Â.

General Musharraf, whose support for the US-led war on terror has caused consternation among Pakistan's hardline elements, has promised to address women’s rights as part of his more moderate agenda.

But analysts said that the murder of the female minister highlighted the failure of his government in curbing Islamic extremism. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan in a recent report said that violence against women had increased alarmingly, with some of the incidents incited by Mullahs opposed to women’s emancipation.

Islamists also campaigned against the Women Protection Bill which was recently passed by parliament, which seeks to provide protection to women who have suffered discrimination under Islamic Sharia laws.

Women make up just over 20 per cent of the lower house of parliament, according to the country’s main human rights group, and there are three women ministers in the cabinet of the federal government.

But widespread discrimination against females continues to be a problem in what remains a male-dominated society, particularly in the countryside, where most Pakistanis live.

Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,253125,00.html

 

[Solo]

ERITREA

Pastor Arrested – VOM Sources

• Pastor Habtom Tesfamikael, one of the last remaining free Christian leaders in Eritrea, was recently arrested and imprisoned. He was a pastor of one of the largest Pentecostal churches in Eritrea, the Asmara Full Gospel Church. Pastor Habtom is married and has been serving the Lord for more than 30 years. Pray God will protect Pastor Habtom while in prison and comfort his wife. Ask God to use his experience to bring others to the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Romans 12:14-21

LAOS

Muslim Mob Attack House Church – VOM Sources

• In Southern Laos, two Christian men have been taken from their farms and put in prison. No charges have been filed and no news is forthcoming about their current situation. Pray God protects and encourages these men and their families in this difficult time.
  [/*:m:f418a]
• In North Central Laos, on January 18, five police officers showed up at a Christian brother's home and arrested him. VOM sources have known him and his family for 20 years. His wife and 12-year-old son did not get an opportunity to speak to him before he was taken away. All efforts to locate him or allow his wife to know where he is being detained have been unsuccessful. According to VOM contacts, in several similar incidents, the people taken by police were never found alive. Pray for this family, that has led more than 500 people to Christ in the past two years. Ask God to protect this brother and comfort his wife and child.
  Psalm 119:49-56[/*:m:f418a]

 

[YESHUA]

I look forward to my time here.

I did not realive that I was being vague in any of my posts. Rather, I chose my words very carefully as to make sure that I do not leave any ambiquity in what I say.

I seek to ask questions - at times that might challenge the status-quo, but it is through asking that we are able to find answers.

I also believe that the God we serve is not threatened by questions, and as such neither should God's followers be either.

And just look to Sudan and Darfur, the Christians in Sudan have been killed and raped and GOD know what else for the past 20 some years and now we se Darfur being persecuted in the same manner but with one difference it is been done by black moslems.
and for what oil and that's a fact there is found oil in Sudan where the Christians live but they refuse to exploit it so what does the arab moslems govt do kill them and make them go away by force

 

[Jeff Mills]

Solo

Islam is a religion of peace.......Check it out..... http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/

http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/

I believe one must look at the fruits of this religion before calling it a peaceful religion. The truth is that every single terrorist movement has involved Islam. The Koran call anyone outside of their religion an infidel. That is not a peaceful religion. We need to pray that the Lord will change these people.

 

[Solo]

EGYPT

Police Detain Families after Anti-Christian Attack - Compass Direct News

Police detained Christian families in Upper Egypt and forced them to deny arson attacks on their homes during an outburst of anti-Christian violence last week. Two Coptic Orthodox families have said police detained them for 36 hours when they attempted to report a February 13 assault on their homes in Armand, 373 miles south of Cairo. The fires came five days after Muslim groups set four Christian-owned shops alight on February 9. It is believed hostilities began over accusations that Christians were blackmailing Muslim women to convert. Authorities detained Christians when they tried to report the February 13 arson attack on their homes. Pray God will provide for the families that have lost their homes and property. Ask God to use their suffering to draw other into fellowship with Him. Psalm 5:11-12

 

[Jeff Mills]

I know some missionaries that have just started a work in Egypt. I pray they are protected as they share the Truth!

 

[Solo]

INDONESIA

Indonesian Christians Attacked; Church Closed - VOM Sources

On February 11, 2007, a Moslem mob stormed Indonesia Bethel Church, in Majalaya, disrupting the service and beating church members. More than 50 Islamic extremists raided the church building and ordered the congregation to leave. Church members were threatened, beaten, and asked to show their identity cards. During the raid, a cell phone belonging to a church member, offerings, an important building permit and pictures of Jesus Christ were stolen. The militants insulted believers and said Indonesia was a Muslim nation. Hours after the attack at Indonesia Bethel Church, the same Islamic extremists marched to Baranangsiang and closed a church there. Pray believers in Indonesia will rest in the knowledge that God walks with them through this difficult time. Ask Him to heal all who were injured. Psalm 23

Information received in email from Voice of the Martyrs at http://www.persecution.com/

 

[Solo]

INDONESIA

UPDATE - Islamic Extremists Sentenced in Killing Christian School Girls – Associated Press

On March 21, 2007 three Islamic militants were found guilty of decapitating three Christian school girls and dumping their bloodied heads in nearby villages. According to Associated Press reports published in Indonesia, the Islamic militants were sentenced to between 14 and 20 years for the killings of Theresia Morangke and Yarni Sambue, both 15, and 17-year-old Alfita Poliwo. Hasanuddin was sentenced to 20 years for masterminding the 2005 attack, while his co-conspirators, Lilik Purnomo and Irwanto Irano, each received 14 years. A fourth girl in the attack, Noviana Malewa, then 15, received serious injuries to her face and neck, but survived. After the attack, Noviana suffered damaged nerves, a dislocated lower jaw and loosened teeth. VOMedical provided reconstructive surgery to repair nerve damage and reduce scarring. Pray God continues to heal Noviana's emotional and mental scars. Pray for Christians in Indonesia who face great persecution because of their faith in Jesus Christ. Psalm 108:4; John 16:33

Information received in email from Voice of the Martyrs at http://www.persecution.com/

 

[jgredline]

The family of Laleh Bakhtiar, a 68-year-old Chicago-based academic, fears for the safety of the Christian-turned-Muslim following her publication of the first English translation of the Quran by an American woman and one that challenges the widespread belief that Muhammed granted husbands the right to beat their wives.


Bakhtier, who converted over 30 years ago, is releasing "The Sublime Quran" on April 10, a translation that is "universal, inclusive" and "with no parenthetical expressions," according to an interview she gave the American Muslim.

"The translation has internal consistency and reliability," she said. It also reverts translation of the Arabic word "daraba" in chapter 4, verse 34, of Islam's holy book – rendered as "beat" for centuries – "back to its original interpretation meaning 'to go away'."

Only last week, a German judge denied a divorce to a German woman of Moroccan descent, who claimed spousal abuse, because she and her husband came from a "Moroccan cultural environment in which it is not uncommon for a man to exert a right of corporal punishment over his wife."

"That's what the claimant had to reckon with when she married the defendant," Judge Christa Datz-Winter wrote in a statement issued by a Frankfurt court.

The 26-year-old mother of two had been repeatedly beaten and threatened with death by her husband, according to the Guardian News.

Datz-Winter invoked the Quran to support her argument when the woman protested the decision, reading from verse 34 of sura 4 of the Quran, An-Nisa (Women), in which husbands are told to strike their wives as a final response to disobedience: "... as to those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them and leave them alone in the sleeping places and beat them".

That is the passage Bakhtier disputes and, which her critics say, the unqualified author has distorted with a "predetermined agenda."

http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.a ... E_ID=54973

 

[Relic]

More "Peaceful Muslims"
April 2nd, 2007

posted by CJ from a soldiers perspective web blog


It's not just Iran that has hostage-taking aspirations. Iraqi Militants are also holding two Germans - a woman and her 20-year old son - who moved to Iraq 40 YEARS AGO!! My gosh, the German government wasn't even helping us in Iraq and they go and pull this stunt. Their reason: pull out of Afghanistan?!

A militant speaking on the video but out of sight said: "We are giving the German government another 10 days to begin withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan or we shall kill this criminal woman and her son who works in the Foreign Ministry of the government of (Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-) Maliki."

Yup, that's a peaceful bunch of religious people, them Muslims.


================================

Here is the article:

Iraqi militants set new deadline on German hostages
02 Apr 2007 23:32:06 GMT
Source: Reuters
[url]http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L02396334.htm


DUBAI, April 3 (Reuters) - Iraqi militants holding a German woman and her son hostage said on Tuesday they were giving Germany a new deadline of 10 days to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan or the two would be killed.

The Arrows of Righteousness group posted a video on the Internet showing Hannelore Marianne Krause urging Germany to heed the demands of the militants.

The group had issued an earlier ultimatum on March 10 that it would kill the pair if Berlin failed to pull out its troops from Afghanistan. The two were seized from their home in the western Baghdad district of Ghazaliya in early February.

"I urge the German people to help me in my difficult situation," said Krause, according to an Arabic translation of her comments, only part of which could be heard.

"Germany was safe before it got involved in this satanic coalition with America against what they call terrorism," said Krause, shown sitting on the ground next to her son.

A militant speaking on the video but out of sight said: "We are giving the German government another 10 days to begin withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan or we shall kill this criminal woman and her son who works in the Foreign Ministry of the government of (Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-) Maliki."

Germany, which opposed the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, has about 3,000 troops in Afghanistan as part of a NATO force stationed in the country after U.S.-led troops toppled the Taliban in 2001 for harbouring al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

The woman is married to an Iraqi physician and moved to Iraq 40 years ago. Her son is reported to be in his mid-20s and has dual German-Iraqi citizenship.

The German government has said it is working to try to secure the hostages' release but will not be blackmailed.



.

 

[Solo]

UZBEKISTAN

Pastor Appeals Sentence - VOM Sources/Forum 18 News
Pastor Dmitry Shestakov has appealed his four-year work-camp sentence. According to The Voice of the Martyrs contacts, Pastor Shestakov's family will be permitted to go with him to one of Uzbekistan's open work camps. Forum 18 News reported that in imposing its verdict, the court said it would be impossible to "re-educate" Shestakov without isolating him from society. Forum has also reported that prison administration has banned Pastor Shestakov from kneeling to pray and his New Testament has been confiscated. In exchange, he has been offered the Koran to read. He remains imprisoned in Andijan until his appeal is heard. Pray Pastor Shestakov's appeal is successsful and for God to comfort his family. Psalm 41:2-3


NIGERIA

Teacher Killed by Muslim Students - Compass Direct News/VOM Sources
On March 21, 2007, Christianah Oluwasesin, a teacher at a secondary school in Northern Nigeria was beaten, stoned and burned by Muslim students over claims she desecrated the Quran. According to a Compass Direct News report, Oluwasesin was supervising a final examination on Islamic religious knowledge when she collected papers, books and bags from the all-girls class and in accordance with school procedure and dropped them in front of the class to prevent cheating. According to another teacher, soon after Oluwasesin dropped the bags in front of the class, one of the girls began to cry. She told her classmates she had a copy of the Quran in her bag, that Oluwasesin touched the bag and by doing so had desecrated the Quran, since she was a Christian. This led to a riot which was joined by Muslim extremists, resulting in Oluwasesin being beaten to death. They brought old mats to where her body was, placed dirt on her corpse and then burned it. The Voice of the Martyrs has met with her husband and is supporting her family. Pray God will comfort Oluwasesin's family and for her testimony to those that killed her, that it will bring them into the knowledge of Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:5

Information received in email from Voice of the Martyrs at http://www.persecution.com/

 

[Solo]

PAKISTAN

Five Christians Charged with Blasphemy – VOM Sources

Five Christians have been charged with blasphemy under Pakistan's blasphemy laws 295-A and 295-C, in Toba Tek Singh, Pakistan. Daniel, an 11-year-old Christian boy, refused to play with his Muslim friends, resulting in them beating him. When Daniel's family confronted the attackers, the Muslims called the police and made a false report saying they had blasphemed the name of the Holy Prophet. Now Daniel's family-Rashid Masih, Salamat Masih, Sahba Masih Motta, Bao Masih and Sheela Masih-is living under threat of attack by Muslim extremists. The Muslim family told other Muslims at a religious gathering that the Christians had disgraced the Holy Prophet, tore a holy sticker and beat it with a shoe. This has led to tension in the city. Christians in the area fear Muslim extremists will attack the family. There was fear there would be attacks during celebrations leading up to Easter Sunday. If convicted under blasphemy laws 295-A and 295-C, the family faces three years imprisonment, a fine and the death penalty, or life imprisonment and a fine. Pray God protects these believers and provides a way of escape for them. Psalm 41:2-3

Information received in email from Voice of the Martyrs at http://www.persecution.com/

 

[Solo]

ETHIOPIA

Bible Students Arrested; Church Leaders' Houses Raided - VOM Sources

JIMMA - On March 22, two Bible school students were imprisoned on the accusation of attempting to kill an imam. They were released one week later with after paying a fine. A court hearing was scheduled for April 2, 2007.

BAMBASSE - April 2, the home of evangelist Tolosa Megersa was raided by local Muslims. Six of his cattle and sheep were killed. Five days later, the home of Full Gospel Church leader Lemmu Abdissa, was also raided. All of his property was destroyed, including 4,000 kilograms of grain.

Thank God for the release of the two students. Pray those who have lost property will be encouraged and rest in knowing they have "better and lasting possessions." Hebrews 10:34-37

Information received in email from Voice of the Martyrs at http://www.persecution.com/

 

[Solo]

Report: 3 Killed in Attack on Bible Publishing House in Turkey
Wednesday, April 18, 2007

ISTANBUL, Turkey  Attackers killed three people Wednesday at a publishing house that had been the subject of protests for distributing Bibles in Turkey, the government-run Anatolia news agency reported.

One person who had his throat cut inside the publishing house and another who jumped from the third floor to escape were taken to local hospitals for treatment, the private Dogan news agency said. Anatolia said one of those taken to the hospital later died.

Nationalists previously had protested outside the Zirve publishing house in the city of Malatya, accusing it of proselytizing, Dogan reported.

Video footage broadcast on private NTV news channel showed one man being tackled by police outside of the building, and another in a neck brace being loaded into a stretcher.

Malatya is known as a hotbed of nationalists and is the hometown of Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turkish man who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981

Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,266681,00.html