On 3 May deadly riots broke out  between the Muslim Meitei tribe and the Christian Kuki-Zo tribes in Manipur. Since then over 130 Kuki-Zo have been killed and over 50,000 displaced. Now that the internet ban has been lifted, a 26-second video has emerged after two months showing dozens of men parading and assaulting two naked Christian women. Elsewhere, a Christian woman’s husband was killed by a mob who then surrounded and sexually assaulted her daughter. Her son was killed trying to stop them. ‘How can the police say they aren’t aware of what happened when they were present while we were assaulted? The bodies of my husband and son were taken by them to the government morgue in Imphal’, she told Al-Jazeera. These are just two of the ongoing violent attacks on Christian women and brutal killings of Christian families, with homes being burned down and communities being terrorised.

On 20 July Iraq expelled the Swedish ambassador only hours after protesters angered by the burning of the Quran in Sweden stormed the Swedish embassy in central Baghdad, scaling the walls of the compound and setting it on fire. Iraq’s prime minister also recalled his country’s chargé d’affaires in Sweden and suspended the working permit of Swedish telecom company Ericsson on Iraqi soil. The burning of the embassy was called by supporters of the influential Iraqi Shia religious and political leader Muqtada al-Sadr, to protest against the second planned burning of a Quran in front of the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm that day. However, although protesters in Sweden kicked and partially damaged the Quran, they did not burn it as promised. In Baghdad, all the Swedish embassy staff are safe. Sweden’s foreign ministry condemned the attack and highlighted the need for Iraqi authorities to protect diplomatic missions. See also Europe article 2, ‘Sweden: religious intolerance’.

The Jesus Revolution film is coming to Netflix on 31 July, allowing thousands more the opportunity to hear the gospel. It was released in February, earning $52 million in theatres, remaining in the top ten for several weeks. In April it became number one best seller on Amazon Prime, Blu-ray and DVD charts. It tells the true story behind the Jesus Movement of the 1960s and 1970s, including how Pastor Smith welcomed hippies looking for truth at Calvary Chapel, starting one of the greatest spiritual awakenings in American history. Since February there has been a revival which mirrors the 1970s. Thousands are being touched by God, and this divine movement is changing their lives. ‘We’ve had people accepting Christ in the theatres’, said Pastor Greg Laurie, on whose life the film is based. People were praying out loud asking Jesus to come into their life. ‘We had pastors and Bibles on hand. I've never heard of anything quite like doing evangelism in movie theatres on this scale.’

The 2023 Next Level Prayer Conference, at Wembley Arena, opened its doors to over 10,000 worshippers. Recently Justin Welby has said there was an alarming drop in church congregations. Pastor Bolaji, leader of the Harvesters, who initiated the conference, said, ‘The popularity of the conference, which saw thousands of people coming together, proves there is still a vibrant community looking for a place to come together in spirit and worship. The essence of Harvesters is to provide unity and a beacon of hope and direction in turbulent times. While church attendance may be declining, we see this as an opportunity not a deterrent. It signifies a need for a different approach that resonates with today's world. Our expansion is driven by our belief that the gospel's transformative message, presented in a way that addresses contemporary challenges and speaks to people's lived experiences, is more relevant than ever.’