Displaying items by tag: Refugees

Violent flare-ups in Central African Republic (CAR) have sent thousands fleeing for their lives. The UN said that over 5,000 refugees have arrived in southern Chad since 27 December, fleeing from north-western CAR. Over 75,000 people were already in camps before the recent influx; many walked long distances to escape violence. Although the border is officially closed, as a humanitarian gesture authorities are allowing refugees to cross. Widespread human rights abuses are being reported, and UNHCR said that over 1.1 million people have been displaced, both within the country and as refugees. Because of the fighting, Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) has had to suspend its work in the seven health centres in outlying districts of Paoua. An estimated 30,000 who fled dangerous outlying areas are now taking refuge in Paoua. See

Research commissioned by the government suggests that migrants may be responsible for most of Germany's rise in violent crime. Researchers say the findings are not surprising because many migrants are single males aged 14-30. This group is most likely to commit crime, irrespective of nationality. Migrants are twice as likely to be reported to police for alleged violent crimes as German nationals, and a third of all victims of violent crimes by migrants are other migrants. The report comes as Chancellor Angela Merkel's centre-right CDU/CSU, after its poor showing in the recent election, prepares for coalition talks with the centre-left SPD. Over a million migrants and refugees, fleeing war and abuses, have entered Germany through the open-door policy, which has led to tensions at home.

Many people from around the world are contacting us to ask about the situation in Lebanon.

Lebanon is living under uncertainty; many people are living in fear and news of an imminent war is the talk of the town. On the 4th of November the Lebanese prime minister surprisingly presented his resignation while in Saudi Arabia. This came as a shock to everyone as no one, not even the president or high officials from his own political party knew about that. This is creating lots of suspicion that he is placed under house arrest in Saudi Arabia and that he is part of a political deal that will be put in effect shortly

The Lebanese president has requested international assistance for the release of the prime minister and while many tried to interfere it is to no avail.

The real problem is the escalating tension between Iran and Saudi Arabia and the fear is that Lebanon will be a proxy nation where the Sunni/ Shiite war will take place (same as what is happening with Yemen)

What about the prophetic role and the destiny of Lebanon? We believe that Lebanon is the door to the Middle East and that it is the place from where Christianity will spread to the whole Middle East. The church of Lebanon is used by God now to bring the gospel to countless number of refugees in the land and many are receiving gospels and are now believers in Jesus Christ who died for their sins.

We are first hand witnesses of God’s movement. This may not be the way we ever envisioned that the gospel will go forth but God’s ways are so different than our ways

Fear is rising and threats are real. Already, one in three people in Lebanon is a refugee and poverty is increasing among the Lebanese so a new war whether it is economic, political or military will be disastrous on the nation.

As far as we are concerned, we are continuing reaching out to people in need, restoring childhood to children and educating the leaders of tomorrow. we are still having several bible studies going on with refugees and we are still working out details of camp rent with the owner trying to put demands on him and trying to work a 6 months contract renewable if we see the situation needing us to stay there. We are also still going into Syria preparing for the return of Syrians there

Prayer requests

- That our prime minister would come back to Lebanon
- That our president will be strong and wise in his dealing with the present threat
- That Lebanon will not be used as a proxy nation for nations to settle their conflict
- That Syrians will go back into their own land safely
- That we will be ready for emergency response if needed
- That hearts will be open to the gospel of peace as it is so much needed now

The nations are in an uproar and the kings of the earth plot against the anointed one, they take their stand and take counsel together against the Lord, but the one who sits on the throne laughs at their rebellion - Psalm 2.

We are very happy to know that you are praying for us, for our nation and for the whole Middle East. Jesus is setting the stage for His return and we can’t but pray: come Lord Jesus Maranatha!

Thank you for your love, your care and your support.

A Lebanese Prayer Leader Friend of IPC

Paul, a convert from Islam, now works distributing food to newly-arriving Syrian refugee families. Recently, he gave out the last food package he had for the entire month. The lady next in line started crying when she realised there was none left for her family. She told Paul that she and her children were desperate. Paul said they were out of food packages, but offered to pray for her. He also told her how he came to Jesus. As they finished praying, Paul’s phone rang with the unexpected news that another 35 food portions were available. The mother, full of wonder and gratefulness, praised God for how Jesus had answered their prayer. A few weeks later, her husband (who had been fighting with IS) came to meet Paul. He said, ‘I heard what you had done for my family. I thought about how I was in Syria killing people in the name of religion, but you love in the name of Jesus. I left the other fighters to come and meet the man who loved my family, and to learn about Jesus from you.’

For three weeks in November, a team will be traveling along the refugee trail through Europe. They will be posting first-hand stories and sharing from their experiences as they travel from Greece to Northern Europe. They hope that their account of travelling alongside the refugees will inform us all how to pray more specifically and continue to advocate for the Syrians and other peoples from the Levant region. People can follow along, through the stories they will post online and pray with up-to-date insights by clicking on the ‘More’ link. Syria remains a nation in devastation as war and violence continues.

Famine continues, and refugee camps in Kenya and Uganda continue to fill. Church leaders in Uganda, Kenya and South Sudan have launched another desperate appeal for food aid to keep refugees and churchgoers alive until Christmas, after enduring an 18-month-long period of droughts, famine and conflict. Archbishop Stanley Ntagali of Uganda said, ‘The numbers and the need are overwhelming. I appeal to you all to help us so that we can help these helpless people, the refugees from South Sudan.’ The refugees, having fled famine and conflict in their homeland, are now living in Camp Rhino, northern Uganda. Most of their food aid is provided by Barnabas Fund, working through the Church of Uganda. Every day, 300 refugees from South Sudan arrive in the camp. The numbers have risen to 120,000, and are predicted to go even higher. A large proportion are women and children.

‘Children are visibly traumatised and distressed, and many have stopped speaking,’ said a Save the Children team member in Bangladesh. Displaced children arriving there are exhibiting signs of trauma such as nightmares and loss of speech after witnessing horrific violence, and are in urgent need of psychological and emotional support. As well as providing food, water and shelter to more than half a million, charities have identified psychological and emotional support services as a critical need. Most of those arriving from Myanmar are women and girls: some have been raped and sexually abused. Hundreds of children are separated from their families, and report having witnessed violence first hand. Their enormous psychosocial needs are obvious to anyone walking through the camps and makeshift settlements.

"Rescue those being led away to death"*

We are bringing you this article which was originally to highlight North Korean Refugees Day, which has past, but it brings some informative information to guide our ongoing prayers for this troubled nation…

We cannot allow the latest provocations of the Kim Jong Un regime to divert us from the root cause of this problem: the atrocious violations of human rights being committed by this Kim regime and abetted by Xi Jinping.

Eighty percent of North Korean escapees carry poison so they can kill themselves if they are arrested in China.  They would rather die than be repatriated to North Korea.     China’s “repatriation policy is a death sentence for North Koreans”.**

Why Should We Care?   The situation for North Korean refugees is worse than ever before.  There is nothing that Kim Jong Un fears more than the PEOPLE of North Korea who are the ones who have educated us about the horrible suffering in the DPRK.  Kim will do everything in his power to prevent their escape and China’s communist government will comply with his wishes despite China’s international treaty obligations.  Just recently, a family of five committed suicide rather than face repatriation to North Korea   In this case, a senior member of the North Korea’s Worker’s Party with his wife, son and two daughters begged the Chinese security forces not to force them back to North Korea.  The World Tribune reported: the Chinese police instead followed an order from Beijing to escort them with heavily armed security guards thousands of miles away to the northeastern province of Liaoning which borders North Korea.  Fearing certain torture and imprisonment and possible execution, the family committed suicide by taking poison.

The defectors have repeatedly told us about the close cooperation between the Chinese and the North Korea security forces.

What the Chinese authorities are doing is inhumane, barbaric and illegal.  It is a violation of international law as China is a signatory to the refugee convention which it signed in September of 1982 (The People’s Republic of China signed the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol on September 24, 1982.)

Consider that the Chinese government refuses to allow the UN High Commissioner for Refugees any access to these refugees but gives free reign to the DPRK’s Ministry of State Security agents to hunt down refugees and to murder those who try to help them.  Even Chinese citizens have been jailed and murdered for helping North Korean refugees.

 Will you take a stand for these men, women and children whose only crime was to try to live?  We will provide you anything you need to take part: a sample letter of petition, posters, videos, prayer points, so you can take part.  If action is already planned in your city, we will connect you with your city coordinator.

Here’s how you can participate – two possible ways.

Be a City Coordinator: If you live in a city with a Chinese consulate, the role of the city coordinator is very simple: deliver a letter of petition on Friday, September 22nd to the Chinese embassy or consulate calling on the PRC to stop repatriating North Korean refugees.  You can plan any additional activity you wish.  For example, here in Washington, D.C. the North Korea Freedom Coalition will also hold a demonstration and a candlelight vigil, while in Seoul, South Korea, the Lawyers for Human Rights and unification of Korea are planning a protest, while in Pretoria, South Africa, Ata Gallous is hosting a conference to raise awareness in South Africa about North Korea’s suffering.

Be a Solidarity City Coordinator: Solidarity city coordinators are in cities with no Chinese consulate but who wish to take action for North Korean refugees.  You could host a film screening, a prayer vigil, collect signatures, host any event to raise awareness and raise funds for organizations that rescue North Korean refugees.  For example, in Ithaca, New York, debuNK is hosting an event to educate students at Cornell about the plight of North Korean refugees, while in Traverse City, Michigan, Sally Jo Messersmith is gathering with friends to pray for North Korea at the Korean War memorial there.

Last year 24 cities worldwide took part in Save North Korean Refugees Day from Pretoria, South Africa to San Francisco, California, from Seoul, South Korea, to Paris, France.  For inspiration, you can see the full report of last year’s Save North Korea Refugees Day on our website at www.nkfreedom.org.  If you are interested in being a part of Save North Korean Refugees Day, please reply to this email.  If you would like to support these efforts websites are listed below.

We need your voice to be heard!

ACTA NON VERBA,

*Proverbs 24: 11

**testimony of North Korean defectors during North Korea Freedom Week 2017

Suzanne Scholte - Seoul Peace Prize Laureate

President, Defense Forum Foundation

Chair, North Korea Freedom Coalition

www.defenseforumfoundation.org |www.nkfreedom.org

Please be in prayer for the plight of the North Korean people who have suffered so much under the brutal dictatorship of the Kim family for many decades. Pray for China to change its attitude to North Korean defectors so that they can be welcomed and helped across the border in China rather than be sent back to almost certain death.

Pablo leads a small indigenous ministry. He says Syrian refugees are frustrated with Islam, and when we begin to show the love of God in our actions and tell them about God in the Bible, they say they had never heard anything like it. When they start coming to church one of the brothers begins visiting them in their apartment, and explains that, as Christians, they are expressing God's compassion and kindness. The refugees become Christian. Every six months the EU sends 150 refugee families to this ministry for assistance to get resettled. Every month its human and financial resources are stretched. But they do whatever God tells them to do.

Holiday venues: pray for God to pour out his blessings on all the Christian summer camps for youth and adults during the next few weeks. Pray for protection from terror attacks wherever people gather this season. French politics: may God give grace to President Macron, who secured a majority in the National Assembly last month. He must seize a small window of opportunity for radical economic change, while not falling into the same trap as President Sarkozy, who faced a wave of paralyzing strikes after unveiling his first radical proposals. Pray for Macron to reverse France’s decline through wise management of the National Assembly. Migration crisis: pray for European and African ministers trying to regularise the flow of refugees from Africa to Europe, coupled with a much tougher strategy to deport illegal migrants from Italy and break up smuggling rings. See: