A twin-suicide bombing outside a church in Peshawar in Pakistan has killed at least 80 people, in one of the worst attacks on Christians in the country. Two bombers blew themselves up as worshippers were coming out of the city's historic All Saints church after attending Sunday Mass, police say. Relatives of the victims gathered at the scene to protest against the government's failure to protect them. Militants linked to Pakistani Taliban have said they carried out the bombing. The group, Jandullah, said it was in retaliation for US drone strikes in Pakistan's tribal northwest. Sunday's twin attacks targeted Peshawar's historic All Saints Church as hundreds of worshippers were attending Mass. Witnesses said they heard two blasts, the second more powerful than the first. More than 120 people were wounded in the bombings. It is the latest in a series of attacks on Pakistani Christians, who represent about 1.6% of the country's largely Muslim population.

Pray: against the evil that controls the minds of those who carry out these bombings. (Pr.14:32)

More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-24193734

Bibles are being desecrated, churches attacked and human rights advocates threatened in Pakistan as Islamic extremists intensify pressure on the Christian community. Christians have faced persecution in Pakistan for years but the climate has deteriorated in recent months particularly since the burning of a Koran at the church of Florida by pastor Terry Jones last month. Last Saturday, the Sarhadi Lutheran Church in Mardan was targeted in a bomb attack. It is believed that Islamic militants planted the bomb. Despite people being present at the church at the time, no one was killed or injured in the explosion. The church’s pastor, the Rev Ghulam Shad, said: ‘It appears that the militants only wanted to demolish the church, but not to injure any of our people’. When asked by the news service about the church’s attitude towards the perpetrators, he answered: ‘All we can do is to pray for them as we are taught by our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (See also Prayer Alert 14-2011)

Pray: again for the believers who are persecuted for their faith that God will protect them. (Ps.12:5)

More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christians.under.increasing.pressure.in.pakistan/27837.htm

An innocent spelling mistake by a Christian school girl has proved grounds enough for Muslims to accuse her of blasphemy. Sir Syed Girls’ High School has taken the unusual step of accusing one of its students of blasphemy and expelling her after she misspelt a word whilst answering a question on a poem praising Prophet Muhammad. Also a mentally ill Christian man has died whilst being held in prison in Lahore on blasphemy charges. Aslam Masih was also suffering from tuberculosis at the time of his death. Source: http://claas.org.uk/ Also last Wednesday a mob of 40 Muslim extremists targeted the Christian community of Ahata Kamiyan, killing 25-year-old Sabir Masih and injuring 21 others. The injured, mainly women and children, were immediately taken to a hospital in Multan.

Pray: for God to protect the many isolated Christian communities in Pakistan as they follow their faith. (Ps.5:11)

More: http://bibleforums.org/showthread.php/231028-PAKISTAN-%E2%80%93-Extremists-kill-Christian-in-attack-oncolony

Abduction, forced conversion to Islam, and then marriage against the will of Christian girls, is a growing trend in Pakistan with over 700 cases every year. A typical recent incident involved 14-year-old Mehek Rashid kidnapped at gunpoint from her home by a gang of five armed Muslim men. One of her abductors yelled that he would purify Mehek by converting her to Islam before marrying her. Local authorities refuse to investigate the case because the assailants were a prominent Muslim family. A senior church leader warned that the ‘the cases of forced conversion are rising at an alarming rate’. Another recent case was Mariam Gill abducted on her way home from the market by a Muslim businessman who had asked her to marry him and been refused, so she was forcibly converted and married to her kidnapper. His actions were praised as a ‘pious act’ by the Muslim leader who conducted the wedding ceremony.

Pray: for God to cause authorities and regulators to bring an end to crimes against Christians' human rights. (Ps.5:10,11)

More: http://www.barnabasfund.org/Estimated-700-Christian-girls-annually-kidnapped-and-forcibly-married-to-captors-in-Pakistan.html

Following the latest double suicide bombings of two churches, protests and vigils have taken place across Pakistan demanding better protection. Local authorities have been accused of not following up on previous bomb threats or taking any action to protect the community preceding the attack. UK human rights organization ‘Global Minorities Alliance’ said, ‘the government has failed to protect the minorities’ and similar comments came from the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales who agree that the Pakistani Government must do more to protect Christians who show great courage in giving witness to their faith in the midst of terrorists violent ideology. Release International appealed to Christians in the UK to stand by their persecuted Pakistani brothers and sisters and added, ‘Pakistan must take immediate and effective action to protect its Christian minority.

Pray:    for all who were bereaved and those who were injured or live in fear because of the tragedy. Pray also for all who are being attacked and killed simply because of their faith. (1Cor.4:12)

More:    http://www.christiantoday.com/article/call.for.greater.protection.of.pakistani.christians/34122.htm

Two Christian men were shot dead in an attack on a Pakistan church by Muslim youths on Monday 21st March. Father of four Yunis Ilyas (47), whose family is supported by a Barnabas Fund feeding programme, and newly-wed Jameel Masih (21) were killed on the spot during the incident at a church in Hoor Camp, Hyderabad. Two others were injured; one of them, Sadiq Masih, was transferred to a hospital in Karachi, where he is in a critical condition. The incident started when Muslim youths shouted vulgar abuse at Christians arriving for a prayer service at the church. The pastor and a number of other Christians remonstrated with the boys, but they continued insulting the Christian girls. The Muslim aggressors left the scene but returned shortly afterwards with pistols and fired at Christians as they were coming out of the church.

Pray: for more of God's protection over believers in Pakistan, asking Him to comfort the many who are grieving and fearful after surviving attacks. (Is.63:9)

More: http://www.barnabasfund.org/two-christians-shot-dead-in-pakistan-church-attack.html

Christians in Pakistan are in ‘grievous distresses’ as large swathes of land are again submerged in water forcing thousands of people into emergency camps where facilities are poor and they are at risk from malaria, dysentery and dengue fever. It comes exactly one year after floods covered vast swathes of Pakistan last summer. Barnabas Fund said some areas were worse than 2010 floods, with the equivalent of an entire monsoon season’s worth of rain in just a few days. Christians are particularly vulnerable because they already live in poverty and are often overlooked in aid distribution. One church leader said, ‘I am terribly sad to see the destruction and poor condition of the people affected by heavy rains, and notice Christians are being deprived of the help, relief and support that other people are getting.’

Pray: for fair distribution of food, clean water and hygiene products to Pakistani Christians caught up in the floods. (Ps.40:1)

More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/pakistani.christians.caught.up.in.floods/28641.htm

Christians are treated like animals and denied the dignity of human beings in Kasur district of Punjab province, a district where a recent rape of a 15 yr. old Christian went unpunished. The NGO Lead (Legal Evangelical Association Development) reports Muslims abusing, mocking, hitting and publicly humiliating Christian men and women, agricultural workers and pastors. Recently a minor encroachment of some flocks belonging to Christians led to Muslim men breaking into the Christian’s home hitting three women, stripping them and then forcing them to run naked through the streets, while they were ridiculed and harassed. The same humiliating treatment was given to two Christian elders when they reported the matter, followed by police raiding their homes and threatening them with a criminal case. The faithful turned to Rev Saleem Gill for help to register a formal complaint. Other Christian families reported abuse and ill-treatment by Muslim landowners, who are their employers. See also Prayer Alert. 17-2013

Pray: that the Christians' complaint will be upheld and the aggressors brought to justice, pray against the rise in physical, psychological and sexual abuse of Christian farmers and agricultural workers in NE Pakistan. (Ps.86:14-17)

More: http://www.fides.org/en/news/33792-ASIA_PAKISTAN_Christians_treated_like_animals_by_Muslims_in_Punjab#.UbhZX5wptr-