A started life in a Bucharest institution. Staff fed him. He was seldom held. At ten months he weighed under a stone, couldn’t sit, could barely hold up his head. He’s now 16, tall, well-spoken, likes comics, drawing and animals. He hopes to attend the Academy of Economic Studies. What caused the turnaround? At 10 months he was fostered by a loving family. Recently images of severely neglected children in institutions in Belarus, Hungary and Ukraine shocked the world. In Ukraine alone, tens of thousands of children are in institutions. Many are invisible, often not counted or monitored; they’re vulnerable to neglect, abuse, violence and exploitation. The time has come to give millions of children enduring institutional ‘care’ a future and a hope. Central and Eastern Europe has over five times the global average of children in institutions. In some countries disabled children account for 70% of the total.
Balfour Declaration centenary
03 Nov 2017
Prime Minister Theresa May hosted her Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. It was a British pledge that paved the way for Israel's creation by supporting a Jewish national home in Palestine. Israel and Jewish communities view the pledge as momentous, while Palestinians regard it as an historical injustice. The UK has rejected calls to apologise for their actions and support of Israel as a nation and has said it is proud of its role. Mr Netanyahu had dinner with Mrs May and the shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, a long-time critic of Israeli policy towards the Palestinians, declined an invitation to attend. The Balfour Declaration was meant to bring peace between two peoples, but 100 years later there is still no peace.
Iran: weapons-grade uranium warning
03 Nov 2017
Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran’s nuclear programme chief, said on 29 October that Iran can begin producing weapons-grade nuclear material quickly if the nuclear deal with foreign powers fails, and insisted that international inspectors would not be given access to Iranian military sites. In early October President Trump told the world, ‘Iran is not in compliance with the deal, and it needs to be renegotiated even though our allies, and even our enemies, do not agree.’ Mr Trump said that the agreement had not curbed Iran’s missile programme and destabilising activities in the Middle East. Mr Salehi said that, although Tehran prefers to keep the agreement intact, they could quickly ramp up uranium enrichment to produce 20% enriched uranium in four days. He made these comments after meeting the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Yukiya Amano. Mr Amano also met President Rouhani and foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. See
Jordan: slavery
03 Nov 2017
Jordan is a destination for women and men from south and southeast Asia for the purpose of forced labour. There have also been reports of women from Morocco and Tunisia being subjected to forced prostitution after coming to work in restaurants and night clubs. Women from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines migrate willingly to work as domestic servants, but some are subjected to conditions of forced labour, including restrictions on movement, withholding of wages, threats, and physical or sexual abuse. $90 is the average cost of a human slave. Pray for Malays and others from different nationalities who get trapped into forced labour. Pray for God to open the eyes of the world to this enormous issue that is happening in Jordan and the surrounding countries.
Global: 42,000,000 abortions a year
03 Nov 2017
42 million people is more than the entire population of Iraq. Abortion is not just confined to one region or people group. It is a global tragedy, with roughly 83% of all abortions taking place in developing countries and 17% in the developed world. It is being called the silent Holocaust. This year’s ‘40 Days for Life’ campaign finishes on Sunday 5 November.
India: persecution in Jharkhand state
03 Nov 2017
Six house church leaders were released on 16-17 October, after being detained for a month on false charges that they had forced Hindus to convert to Christianity. The five men and one woman rejoiced that during their time in jail they were able to share the gospel with fellow prisoners. The arrests occurred soon after state officials in Jharkhand passed the strictest anti-conversion law in India. Local Christians fear increased persecution as a result of the new law. Pray that the six church leaders will continue their work and use their testimony to share the gospel with boldness.
Mali: Christian persecutions
03 Nov 2017
A church leader in Mali reports, ‘Our churches and chapels are now being targeted by extremists, who have told Christians not to gather to pray’. In September and October, extremists ransacked and burned several churches in Mopti region. One congregation who were driven out of the building were told they would be killed if they were seen praying. In 2012, Tuareg separatists and Islamist groups linked to Al Qaeda seized control of northern Mali and declared the region an Islamic state. The new regime imposed sharia law in Timbuktu, including punishments such as amputations for theft. France deployed soldiers to assist the government against advancing Islamists, and a UN force of 13,000 military personnel is now stationed there. Violence continues despite a peace deal with rebel groups. In the first half of 2017 over 42,000 civilians joined those already internally displaced in Mali.
Syria: the refugee ‘highway’
03 Nov 2017
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.