Father Hanna Jallouf and about twenty of his parishioners were taken from the convent in the village of Knayeh by the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front on Sunday. Nuns at the convent have taken refuge in nearby homes. Many nuns, monks and priests have been kidnapped or killed in Syria since 2011. A senior Franciscan official said Fr Hanna and the other Christians had been accused of being ‘collaborators’ with the government. ‘We don't know what to do. We don't know with whom to talk, we're totally unable to get in touch with anyone.’ he said. Christians have tried to avoid taking sides. However, they are gradually being drawn into the conflict. Many fear that if the secular government is overthrown they will be targeted by groups calling for an Islamic state and Christian communities will be destroyed

People were killed in demonstrations across Turkey as Kurds demanded that the government do more to protect the town of Kobane from terrorist fighters. On Tuesday night police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters who burnt cars and tyres as they took to the streets mainly in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish eastern and south-eastern provinces. Clashes also erupted in Ankara and Istanbul where almost one hundred people were detained and thirty were injured. Five died in Diyarbakir. A 25-year-old man died in Varto and at least half a dozen people were wounded there in clashes between police and protesters. Two people died in Siirt province and another died in neighbouring Batman. A curfew exists in Kurdish populated districts of Diyarbakir, Siirt and Van where thousands of protesters rallied against IS's advance on Kobane.

Traditional healers and witchdoctors are contributing to the spread of Ebola. Terrified people from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea have been handing over large sums of cash in return for spells, potions and advice from those claiming to have the antidote. A man in Nigeria going by the name of Dr Zack Balo says he can cure Ebola using animal parts providing he is given £200. Other suggestions include eating raw onions, using anointed water and bathing in salt water at certain times of day. Cases of people flocking to see these so-called healers has resulted in the disease spreading further, as the witchdoctors themselves often contract Ebola, which is spread through contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person. The first Ebola victim in Sierra Leone was a faith healer, whose funeral resulted in over 350 people contracting Ebola after touching her dead body.

In Luke 7, Jesus predicts that his encounter with a sinful woman will become famous throughout the world and throughout history. This woman washed His feet with an abundance of tears, anointed Him with embalming perfume and wiped it over His feet with her long hair. Jesus says in response, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ Today that same desire, the desire for forgiveness of sins, is found on many blog sites, where men and women are asking if the Hajj will cleanse them not only of small common sins, but also of big serious sins. They are told that their desire will be granted by the Hajj, which if performed properly and sincerely for Allah, removes all sins. Muslims go on the Hajj to be cleansed of sin; we all desire to be clean of sin. Romans 6:23 states, ‘For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.’

As winter draws closer, displaced families in the Gaza Strip are still waiting for reconstruction to begin on their homes. According to a statement by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), 20,000 houses are now uninhabitable due to the war in Gaza. UNRWA stressed the need to ensure alternative housing is available for the displaced before the start of winter. Umm Raed and her eight member family live in a tent made from pieces of worn cloth. It’s the only shield from the heat of the sun, but what she is really afraid of is winter when they will be exposed to bitter cold and rain, which will turn their lives into an unbearable hell. Her family cannot afford to rent an apartment due to high prices, demand and landlords who exploit the situation. UNRWA promises to provide financial assistance in the form of ‘rental subsidies’ for those with uninhabitable homes.

Tens of thousands of activists have been demonstrating against China's decision to only allow vetted candidates to run for elections on the island in 2017. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will meet the Chinese ambassador later this week to make clear his ‘dismay and alarm’ at how authorities have handled the demonstrations. He said, ‘It is essential that the people of Hong Kong have a genuine choice of chief executive in 2017 through universal suffrage.’ The unrest began after it was ruled that in three years' time, Hong Kong residents must choose their leader, or chief executive, from candidates picked by Beijing who must declare their ‘love’ for China and its Communist system. The island's chief executive Leung Chun-Ying has called on protest leaders to ‘immediately’ withdraw from the streets. Student leaders threaten to take over government buildings if the region's leader does not resign by Thursday. See also: l

The following is a segment of the Bishop of Baghdad’s Facebook page entry for Sept.30th. ‘Thank you for your prayers, we seriously need them. The good news is - IS has been halted 5 miles from Baghdad. People are very fearful the nation looks as if it has collapsed. The usual hectic streets are almost empty. The news from areas surrounding Baghdad is worrying. ISIS or DAASH as they are known locally are very close to Baghdad. This morning I was with one of the soldiers assigned by the government to protect me. When asked what he would do if he saw IS coming he said he would take off his uniform and run. I asked if he took seriously his role to fight and protect his people. He assured me he did not. He did it for the money. Meanwhile yesterday at Church I spoke on the subject of why we must love Israel. 

President Barack Obama admitted that U.S. intelligence underestimated the Islamic State's emergence in Syria and that breaking up the terrorist cell will be a complicated battle involving both military and political action. The president spoke about implementing the multi-national effort against terrorists and acknowledged that U.S. intelligence didn't take seriously enough what had been taking place in Syria, while overestimating the ability of the Iraqi army to fight militant groups. Islamic militants went underground when al-Qaeda was quashed in Iraq, but over the past two years, during the Syrian civil war when huge swathes of the country were completely ungoverned, they reconstituted themselves. He said we have to push them back, shrink their space, go after their command, their weapons, their fuelling, cut off their financing and work to eliminate the flow of foreign fighters. For facts and INSIGHTS to help your prayers into this subject click the ' Info'  button

In 2011, Yemen ended a 33-year dictatorship in the third successful revolution of the Arab Spring, but reconciliation did not follow revolution. Over the weekend, after a week long siege of the capital, rebels ousted Yemen’s prime minister and captured the Defence Ministry, government television station and the central bank. On Sunday their President signed a UN proposed agreement dictated by the rebels (the Houthis) calling for a new prime minister, a plan to devolve power from the capital and a reduction in fuel prices an issue the rebels seized on to justify their protests. However, the Houthis refused to sign the UN’s anticipated security clauses of the agreement calling for the withdrawal of Houthis forces from the capital, Sana, and several other areas they had seized. Many Yemenis believe the Houthis are agents of the Iranians as Iran backs them. Pray against further Houthis chaos in Yemen.

Nearly four million people in Christian-majority South Sudan face dangerous levels of hunger after two years of violence, crop failure and disease. Acute malnutrition has doubled since last year. The UN predicted in May that half of South Sudan’s population could be either displaced internally, refugees abroad, starving or dead by the year’s end. Cholera outbreaks were reported in nine of South Sudan’s ten states by July. In the same month the UN estimated that nearly four million people (out of a total estimated population of 11.4 million) were facing ‘dangerous levels’ of hunger. An official declaration of famine was predicted for the end of 2014 or early 2015. Pray for the churches and various organisations working towards identifying, prioritising and releasing aid to the South Sudanese.