Displaying items by tag: Asia

70% of Iranians are under 30 and are the most politically active in the 57 Islamic nations. Iranians are eligible to vote from age 15. President Rouhani promised to improve Western ties, revitalise the economy and implement a civil rights charter. But soaring inflation due to damaging US sanctions has prompted Iranian youth to protest regularly against the regime. Pray for peaceful political changes. Although Iran has its own state-controlled Internet and doesn’t support Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, Iranian youth are internet-savvy and network the same as other teenagers - despite laws strictly forbidding it. Pray for Christian broadcasting in Farsi that is secretly reaching today’s fast growing underground Church. Iran and Israel enjoyed good relations until Iran’s Islamic revolution. May God’s Spirit reignite a flame of peace between the nations. For over thirty years, there was a Star of David on the roof of Tehran airport’s main terminal building. The symbol stood there in silence, until Google disclosed it: see

(Linda Digby – Prayer Alert Team)

The Vatican and China have signed a provisional agreement to allow jointly-approved Catholic bishops in China for the first time. Some say it is a significant step towards re-establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries. But critics ask why the church, historically a defender of human rights and Christian values, would willingly join forces with the increasingly authoritarian atheist Chinese government. The agreement will allow the Holy See and the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association to approve jointly the appointment of bishops in China. It comes at a time when religious persecution is escalating after the Chinese government issued new regulations forcing churches to display the national flag and the president’s portrait, while at the same time removing crosses from buildings. See

The British high commissioner tweeted on 26 September that Maldivians were ‘looking forward to the election commission formally confirming the results of the presidential election on 23 September, so that an orderly transfer of power can begin’. However Abdulla Yameen, who was defeated, was ‘preparing to annul’ the vote that raised Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as president. The police and army said they will act to guarantee the election result. After Yameen conceded defeat on election day, political prisoners were released, exiled leaders said they planned to return, and media outlets that closed during his rule said they would re-open. His five-year term was marred by the arrest of scores of activists, opposition leaders being charged with trumped up terrorism offences, and sharp restrictions on free expression. Many are apprehensive and unwilling to believe that a leader who jailed political rivals and top judges will go willingly.

Saudi Arabia’s stability is becoming fragile as the judgment and competence of Mohammed bin Salman, the young crown prince, are questioned. The kingdom has been stable since 1964, and there was a smooth transition when Salman became king in 2015. However, Prince Muqrin, next in the line of succession, was recently removed with no explanation, in favour of Mohammed bin Salman.  He has a track record of impulsive and reckless decisions at home and abroad, which call into question the kingdom’s future. The changes have alienated significant parts of the family. The crown prince’s signature initiative is the war in Yemen, now in its fourth year with no end in sight. The Royal Saudi Air Force has wrecked Yemen’s feeble infrastructure and attacked civilians. One observer said Yemen is now in a death channel. See The kingdom is unpredictable, and the Trump administration financially supports the Yemen war with a blank cheque.

‘See, as your Jesus was beaten and killed, so have we killed your pastor now. His body is in a ditch in the forest. Find him and bury him!’ Militants had tied up the Christian pastor and beaten him until he had bloody wounds all over his body. They made him crawl up a mountain, still beating him with their sticks to force him forwards. When Tilak took his last breath, they sent for the village doctor to confirm his death and then threw his body in a ditch. There was no way he could have survived. The Christians from Tilak’s village found his body and brought it home. Laying him in a hut and paying their last respects they did not expect him to start to move and open his eyes. Tilak was alive! Some of his attackers were present when he came back to life. They must have been the most shocked of all.

Please pray for a man recently rescued from bonded labour slavery who is living with special needs. The International Justice Mission freed him and 13 others from a ginger farm. He is deaf and living with a developmental disability. He does not know traditional sign language, so Christians are working with specialists to communicate with him and serve him in their aftercare programme. Pray that they can help this man get all the care and comfort he needs, and for him to return safely home as soon as possible. Last week we asked God to encourage, protect and continue to grow His Chinese Church after hearing of crosses being removed from buildings. This week Prayercast reported, ‘Beijing's biggest house church was forced to shut down for refusing governmental surveillance.’ and ‘Many are calling this China's worst persecution since Mao’. Thousands of house churches have been shut down and Christians are detained.

Several deals have been struck across Syria over the years of the civil war, but few have made significant differences. Pray that the agreement between Russia and Turkey to create a military buffer zone in Syria's Idlib holds fast and is successful in preventing further deaths as Syria’s last remaining opposition stronghold is included in a demilitarised zone. Turkey's foreign minister declared that only terrorist groups, not civilians, will be removed from Idlib province under the deal. EU spokesperson Maja Kocijancic stressed that the Turkish-Russian deal must protect civilians.

In the Philippines, officials are taking stock of the immense damage caused by Typhoon Mangkhut. On Luzon landslides buried a church where people were sheltering, and engulfed a miners’ bunkhouse with up to fifty inside. The casualties are expected to be 100+. Pray for God to comfort the bereaved and bring healing to the sick. An estimated 5.7 million people have been affected by Mangkhut, and delivering aid supplies is a major challenge. Pray for many workers to come and help repair the infrastructure. In the town of Baggao, where YWAM have a base, houses were demolished, power lines were downed, roads were cut off by landslides, and many remain submerged. Pray for God to give strength and wisdom to those offering counsel and shelter. Rice and corn crops waiting for harvest are under floodwater. Pray for the fishermen and farmers who have lost everything. Mangkhut moved on to Hong Kong and China, tearing off roofs, blowing in doors and shattering glass windows. Pray for the evacuees now returning to devastation.

Bad blood and a thirst for revenge divide people in Mosul, the former IS capital. Many local residents welcomed the jihadists who promised protection from corruption, jobs and security. The promises proved false, but thousands in Mosul still pledged allegiance to IS; some driven by IS propaganda, others by hunger or simply fear. Currently men who worked as IS enforcers or officials are still living in Mosul. Local police pursue them nightly, raiding houses and questioning families of suspected IS members. Some police and civil defence workers who have had relatives killed by IS are now working out their hatred and revenge on unconfirmed suspects, and many residents face suspicion and abuse due to guilt by association.

Iraq’s parliament will select the president on 25 September, then elect a prime minister, and that will eventually lead a new government. On 15 September Mohammed al-Halbousi was elected as speaker. He had previously had a good relationship with the USA which, with Iran, were the first countries to congratulate him on his new post. However, his first two statements to parliament denounced US sanctions against Iran and invited senior Iranians to visit Baghdad. Pray for the networking of leaders at home and abroad in the weeks leading up to the election of a prime minister - the most important and influential position in the government, and therefore requiring a broad agreement among multiple political parties.