On Monday hundreds of anti-government protesters invaded the state television channel, taking broadcasts off-air before army and paramilitary forces secured the building. The intruders were well trained and took instructions via cell phones. Meanwhile thousands of protesters swarmed around the Prime Minister's house, parliament and foreign embassies calling for the premier's resignation. Three died and 400 were injured. There have been two weeks of demonstrations by opposition leader Imran Khan and politician Tahir-ul-Qadri demanding Sharif step down amid accusations of corruption and election fraud. Police restrained 25,000 demonstrators outside Sharif’s residence on Saturday night. Demonstrations have brought the city to a halt. A Pakistani Christian writes, ‘Many Christians are moving to Malaysia and Bangkok. They don´t feel safe any longer. More than twenty families left Peshawar recently. Pray for strength, courage, comfort, grace, divine protection and clear guidance by the Holy Spirit for Christians in Pakistan. Pray for wisdom for pastors leading their people in these stressful times.’

Most of the members of non-Muslim communities held by IS who have been able to communicate with their families have reported persistent pressures to convert to Islam. Pressures ranged from promises of freedom to death-threats. In Kocho, where scores of men were murdered, residents said they would be killed if they didn’t convert. A social media video on 20 August showed Yezidi men converting to Islam. An IS commander said those who do not convert die of hunger and thirst on the mountain (Mount Sinjar, where Yezidi have been surrounded by IS fighters since 3 August). Some converted to save their lives and are now trapped in the area. A member of one such family said, ‘We agreed to convert because we thought this would solve our problem but we are prisoners. We are under surveillance, we are scared of what could happen to us. Can someone come to get us out of here?’

The International Director of Barnabas Fund comments on an IS magazine now being produced in English and other languages. It’s called Dabiq. Dabiq is prophesied by Muhammad to be an end times battle when Muslims conquer Christians then take over the world. Muslims believe Jesus (who they call Isa) will descend via a minaret in Damascus, and from there he will lead armies to destroy every cross, kill every Jew and pagan, and either convert every Christian to Islam or kill them. This apocalyptic dimension is now shaping IS as it sees itself fighting an end time battle. The first issue of Dabiq addressed the ‘return of the Caliphate. The second issue links Noah and the flood to IS removing ‘polluted ideologies affecting the world and condemns the idea of leaving people to choose for themselves what to believe. We are asked to pray against radical Islam with ideologies propagated by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, funded by their vast oil resources, and now effectively reshaping Islam.

In the early hours of Monday morning scores of people were killed by Boko Haram militants shooting sporadically on the residents of Gamborun Ngala, a community which shares its border with Cameroon. A survivor, Abdulfatah Ibrahim, said that many of the residents fled to a neighbouring community for refuge in Cameroon as the attackers threw explosives into their houses. ‘I was in the mosque when the shooting started. We fled to the bush for safety. More than 70 people fled to Cameroon.’ Local media reported that Boko Haram was increasingly expanding its control in the country`s northeast region.