War on Christianity > Pandemic Leads to 60 per cent Increase in Murder of Christians in 2020

Open Doors Releases 2021 World Watch List

Written by Libby Giesbrecht

Saturday, Jan 16 2021, 9:53 AM

(Open Doors USA)

Getting used to a "new normal" was a very different experience for Christians in parts of the world where "restrictions" meant they would be refused access to food, medical care, and crucial aid.

Open Doors is releasing their 2021 World Watch List (WWL), showing the levels of worldwide discrimination against Christians over the past year.

The list reveals how COVID-19 led to increased systemic discrimination against minority Christians.

Open Doors says the pandemic meant Christians from India to Yemen saw an increase in violence and discrimination, lacked basic necessities, and were put under increased surveillance because of their faith.

The list, produced by Open Doors International annually, highlights the exacerbation of systemic discrimination and persecution more than 304 million Christians around the world experienced in 2020 due to the coronavirus.

According to the findings in the WWL, COVID-19 was a reason behind the worsening of persecution already experienced by believers across the globe.

The pandemic encouraged the repression of minority Christians in countries like Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Some were denied aid, the report shows. Others were told they could not have food because "your Church or your God should feed you."

A violent Islamist group in Somalia, Al Shabaab, blamed Christians for the existence of COVID-19, stating the virus was "spread why (by?) crusader forces who have invaded the country and the disbelieving countries that support them."

COVID-19 gave authorities in some countries the authority to investigate the homes of Christians and church members.

Open Doors says their WWL is the "only instrument actively measuring the persecution of Christians, world-wide, annually."

For the first time, all 50 countries on the WWL scored levels of persecution considered to be "very high." The top 12 countries were labelled with "extreme" levels of persecution.

In 2020, 34 countries scored at the level of "very high" persecution.

In total, 74 countries showed "extreme," "very high," or "high" levels of persecution. This is one higher than in the previous year.

Open Doors estimates at least 1 in 8 of all Christians worldwide were affected.

The top countries ranked as having an "extreme" level of persecution include North Korea, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Eritrea, and Yemen.

The list will be released during an online event today on Facebook and YouTube at 6 p.m. local time. Christians gathering for the release of the WWL will engage in a time of learning, worship, and prayer for persecuted Christians around the world.

"As we grapple with restrictions here, we can learn a great deal from our brothers and sisters living in countries where their faith costs them dearly, every year. They know they are not alone, because we have not forgotten them," says Gary Stagg, executive director of Open Doors Canada.

"The World Watch List helps us advocate for them intelligently, and pray for them intentionally that they would be able to stay, as lights in dark places."

Over 900,000 Christians Have Been Killed in 10 Years, at Least 30% Martyred for Their Faith

This is actually a couple years old, but still valid, unfortunately

By Samuel Smith, CP Reporter

Christians attend Sunday service in the Virgin Mary Church at Samalout Diocese in Al-Our village, in Minya governorate, south of Cairo, May 3, 2015. Copts have long complained of discrimination under successive Egyptian leaders and Sisi's actions suggested he would deliver on promises of being an inclusive president who could unite the country after years of political turmoil. However, striking out at extremists abroad might prove easier than reining in radicals at home. Orthodox Copts, the Middle East's biggest Christian community, are a test of Sisi's commitment to tolerance, a theme he often stresses in calling for an ideological assault on Islamist militants threatening Egypt's security.

| (Photo: Reuters/Stringer)

Over 900,000 Christians have been martyred in the last 10 years, a Christian research firm affiliated with Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts estimates.

Gordon-Conwell's Center for the Study of Global Christianity recently released its annual report on the persecution of Christians, which found that as many as 90,000 Christians died for their faith in the last year.

Although the study was released this month, the finding that 90,000 Christians — or one Christian every six minutes — were killed in 2016 was leaked by a prominent Italian sociologist named Massimo Introvigne during an interview with Vatican Radio in December and the report received much media attention before it was even released.

Men in orange jumpsuits purported to be Egyptian Christians held captive by the Islamic State kneel in front of armed men along a beach said to be near Tripoli, in this still image from an undated video made available on social media on February 15, 2015. In the video, militants in black marched the captives to a beach that the group said was near Tripoli. They were forced down onto their knees, then beheaded. Egypt's state news agency MENA quoted the spokesman for the Coptic Church as confirming that 21 Egyptian Christians believed to be held by Islamic State were dead. 

| (Photo: Reuters/Social Media via Reuters TV)

Even though 90,000 Christian martyrs might seem like a lot in one year, the think tank maintains that 90,000 Christians have died each year on average from 2005 to 2015.

"In the last week, several news organizations reported on the persecution of Christians around the world and cited our figure of 90,000 Christian martyrs in 2016," the organization said in an email to supporters. "The Center for the Study of Global Christianity has done extensive research on Christian martyrdom, both historical and contemporary. We estimate that between 2005 and 2015 there were 900,000 Christian martyrs worldwide — an average of 90,000 per year."

Only 30 percent of the 90,000 Christians

were killed because of terrorism

It should be noted that 90,000 Christian martyrs per year is a very liberal estimate. In fact, the organization notes that only 30 percent of the 90,000 Christians were killed because of terrorism. Seventy-percent of the 90,000 Christians were actually killed in tribal conflicts in Africa, which raises the question of whether or not 70 percent of 90,000 Christians were actually killed over their faith or just victims of violent conflicts.

In the email, the center explained the definition of "martyr" it used for its study. Two of the qualifying factors for "martyr" is that the slain Christians must have been in a "situation of witness" and have been killed "as a result of hostility."

"'Witness' in this definition is not restricted to public testimony concerning belief in Jesus," the email explains. "It refers to the individual's entire lifestyle, regardless of whether or not he or she was actively proclaiming at the time of death."

The email adds that the definition "as a result of hostility" takes "a variety of forms including war, conflict, random killing, and genocide, and includes acts by both individuals or groups (such as governments). This excludes deaths through accidents, crashes, illness, or acts of nature."

Last week, the Christian persecution watchdog group Open Doors USA released its 2017 World Watch List of top 50 countries where Christians face the most persecution.

Open Doors estimates that a little over 1,200 Christians were killed for their faith around the globe from Nov. 1, 2015 to Oct. 31, 2016. However, that is a conservative estimate since it only includes documented cases and doesn't include statistics from North Korea and areas of Iraq and Syria, where the Islamic State has killed thousands of people over the last two years.

According to Open Doors, Christian persecution across the world has steadily increased over the last three years and 2016 was "the worst year of persecution on record."

Center for the Study of Global Christianity also found that Christians are the most persecuted religious group throughout the world.

The blood of the Coptic Christians flows into the Mediterranean Sea after they are beheaded by ISIS.

| (Photo: Screen Grab via TKList)

'Silent Night': Persecuted Palestinian Christians Kept Out of Sight

The Middle East’s forgotten Christians

Raymond Ibrahim, Front Page

This article was first published by the Gatestone Institute.  Raymond Ibrahim is a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center.

“The moment they [Hamas] took control [of the Gaza Strip], they started persecuting us, ruining our churches and forcing Christians to convert to Islam.”

Such are the recent recollections of Kamal Tarazi, a 60-year-old Christian man from Gaza, now living in the streets of Nazareth.  Before fleeing, he tried to resist the Islamist takeover, including by calling on Muslims and Christians to unite against Hamas.  As a result, “I was jailed several times. Do you know what a Hamas prison is? It is pure torture.” 

The report adds that “the Islamic group decided to keep him alive to avoid depicting themselves as persecutors of the local Christian population, something that could potentially anger the international community.”  He was eventually released, fled the region, returned, got imprisoned again, and fled again, permanently. “I am sure there are no more than 500 Christians left in Gaza,” he offers, “and it is just part of the general trend.”

His account is a reminder that, while reports on the persecution of Christians emerge regularly from other Muslim majority regions around the world, little is often mentioned of those Christians living under the Palestinian Authority.

This is not because they experience significantly less persecution than their coreligionists.  Open Doors, a human rights group that follows the persecution of Christians, notes in its most recent report that Palestinian Christians suffer from a “high” level of persecution, the source of which is, in its words, “Islamic Oppression”:

Those who convert to Christianity from Islam, however, face the worst Christian persecution and it is difficult for them to safely participate in existing churches. In the West Bank they are threatened and put under great pressure, in Gaza their situation is so dangerous that they live their Christian faith in utmost secrecy….The influence of radical Islamic ideology is rising, and historical churches have to be diplomatic in their approach towards Muslims.

It seems that the unique situation of Palestinian Christians—living in a hotly contested arena with much political and media wrangling in the balance—best explains the lack of news from that area.

“The Persecution of Christians in the Palestinian Authority,” a report by Dr. Edy Cohen, published by the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies earlier this year, goes a long way in validating this supposition.

First, it documents three anecdotes of persecution of Christians, all of which were back-to-back, and none of which were reported by so-called “mainstream media.”  Summaries follow:

April 25: “[T]he terrified residents of the Christian village of Jifna near Ramallah … were attacked by Muslim gunmen … after a woman from the village submitted a complaint to the police that the son of a prominent, Fatah-affiliated leader had attacked her family. In response, dozens of Fatah gunmen came to the village, fired hundreds of bullets in the air, threw petrol bombs while shouting curses, and caused severe damage to public property. It was a miracle that there were no dead or wounded.”

May 13: “Vandals broke into a church of the Maronite community in the center of Bethlehem, desecrated it, and stole expensive equipment belonging to the church, including the security cameras…. [T]his is the sixth time the Maronite church in Bethlehem has been subjected to acts of vandalism and theft, including an arson attack in 2015 that caused considerable damage and forced the church to close for a lengthy period.” 

May 16: “[I]t was the turn of the Anglican church in the village of Aboud, west of Ramallah. Vandals cut through the fence, broke the windows of the church, and broke in. They desecrated it, looked for valuable items, and stole a great deal of equipment.”

These three attacks, which occurred over the course of three weeks, fit the same pattern of abuse that Christians in other Muslim majority regions habitually experience.  While the desecration and plundering of churches is prevalent, so too are Muslim mob risings against Christian minorities—who tend to be perceived as dhimmis, or second-class “citizens,” who should be grateful to receive any toleration at all—whenever they dare speak up for their rights, as occurred in the village of Jifna on April 25:  “[T]he rioters” in Jifna, the report relates, “called on the [Christian] residents to pay jizya—a head tax that was levied throughout history on non-Muslim minorities under Islamic rule. The most recent victims of the jizya were the Christian communities of Iraq and Syria under ISIS rule.”

Moreover, as often happens whenever Christian minorities are attacked in Muslim majority nations, “Despite the [Christian] residents’ cries for help” in Jifna, “the PA police did not intervene during the hours of mayhem. They have not arrested any suspects.”  Similarly, “no suspects were arrested” in the two church attacks.

In short, Palestinian Christians are suffering from the same patterns of persecution—including church attacks, kidnappings and forced conversion—that their coreligionists suffer in other Muslim nations.  The difference, however, is that the persecution of Palestinian Christians has “received no coverage in the Palestinian media. In fact,” Cohan explains, “a full gag order was imposed in many cases”:

The only thing that interests the PA is that events of this kind not be leaked to the media. Fatah regularly exerts heavy pressure on Christians not to report the acts of violence and vandalism from which they frequently suffer, as such publicity could damage the PA’s image as an actor capable of protecting the lives and property of the Christian minority under its rule. Even less does the PA want to be depicted as a radical entity that persecutes religious minorities. That image could have negative repercussions for the massive international, and particularly European, aid the PA receives.

Considered another way, the bread and butter of the PA and its supporters, particularly in the media, is to portray the Palestinians as victims of unjust aggression and discrimination from Israel.  This narrative would be jeopardized if the international community learned that Palestinians are themselves persecuting fellow Palestinians—solely on account of religion.  It might be hard to muster sympathy for a supposedly oppressed people when one realizes that they themselves are doing the oppressing of the minorities in their midst, and for no other reason that religious bigotry.  

Because they are so sensitive to this potential difficulty, “PA officials exert pressure on local Christian[s] to not report such incidents, which threaten to unmask the Palestinian Authority as yet another Middle East regime beholden to a radical Islamic ideology,” Cohen states elsewhere:

Far more important to the Palestinian Authority than arresting those who assault Christian sites is keeping such incidents out of the mainstream media.  And they are very successful in this regard. Indeed, only a handful of smaller local outlets bothered to report on these latest break-ins. The mainstream international media ignored them altogether.

Notably, a similar dynamic exists concerning Muslim refugees.  Although West European politicians and media present them as persecuted and oppressed, in need of a welcoming hand, Muslim migrants themselves persecute and oppress Christian minorities among them—including by terrorizing them in refugee camps and drowning them in the Mediterranean.

Even mere numbers—which are inherently objective—confirm that Christians living under the PA are experiencing some unpleasantry that Muslims are not: although there were approximately 3,500 Christians in the Gaza Strip in 2007, there are now reportedly no more than 500-1,300.

As Justus Reid Weiner, a lawyer acquainted with the region, explains, “The systematic persecution of Christian Arabs living in Palestinian areas is being met with nearly total silence by the international community, human rights activists, the media and NGOs…  In a society where Arab Christians have no voice and no protection it is no surprise that they are leaving.”

Indeed, Christianity is, by all counts, on the verge of disappearing in the place of its birth—literally, as this includes Bethlehem, scene of the Nativity—thereby giving the otherwise seasonally relevant words, “Silent Night,” a more tragic significance. 

Perhaps God is removing His people from these areas before their destruction. Is that possible?

Merkel and Allies Lose Votes but Hang on in German Elections as Right-Wing AfD Surges

Elections in 2 states - AfD virtually doubles vote count in one

and triples in the other

Journalists watch first exit polls following the regional state elections in Saxony and Brandenburg in Berlin

© Reuters / Fabrizio Bensch

Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel’s CDU and coalition partners SPD have managed to cling to power in two crucial state elections. However, these former strongholds have seen a surge in support for Alternative for Germany (AfD).

The states of Saxony and Brandenburg – once part of former Eastern Germany or DDR– have long been considered bastions of support for Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) and the left-wing Social Democrats (SPD). However, parliamentary election results on Sunday have dealt another blow to the so-called ‘Grand Coalition.’

Saxony has been ruled by CDU prime ministers since the 1990s and is considered by some as the party’s spiritual home. However, the CDU saw its support drop to 32 percent on Sunday, down 7.4 points since the last election in 2014, according to an exit poll by German broadcaster ARD. While the party remains the largest in the state, the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) came a close second, taking 27.5 percent of the vote on Sunday, up from 9.7 percent in 2014.

Europe Elects

@EuropeElects

Germany (Saxony regional election), FGW exit poll:

Age group: 18-29

AfD-ID: 22%

GRÜNE-G/EFA: 19%

CDU-EPP: 17%

LINKE-LEFT: 12%

SPD-S&D: 7%

FDP-RE: 7%

Brandenburg encircles Berlin, and has been ruled by the SPD since German reunification in 1990. The AfD’s hopes of surrounding the German capital were dashed on Sunday, but not by a wide margin. The SPD won 27.5 percent of the vote, ahead of the AfD's 22.5 percent. In 2014, AfD only managed to score 12.2 percent, while the socialists took just under 32 percent.

While campaigning in Branderburg, AfD invoked the spirit of 1989 to win votes, printing posters bearing the slogan “Wende 2.0,” referring to the German word for 'turnaround,' used to describe the collapse of East Germany. While the party made a name for itself by vocally opposing Merkel’s 'open door' immigration policies, it has also positioned itself as a champion of the relatively disadvantaged east, protesting the planned closure of coal mines and calling for urban regeneration.

While Merkel's Open Doors policy is being blamed here for the surge in AfD support, I think they are missing the point. Open Doors certainly gave rise to the AfD, but the surge in support in 2019 probably has more to do with the handling of migrants since 2015. The government, courts, police and media policy of not naming the nationality of criminals, and going extra easy on them in the courts, has given rise to far-right neo-Nazi groups, but has also caused great disillusionment among average Germans. How can you trust a government that seems to do more to protect criminals than honest Germans?

‘80% were Grown-Ups’: Swedish Dentist Fired for Exposing Migrant ‘Kids’ as Adults

FILE PHOTO: Migrants arrive at Lulea airport, Kallax in northern Sweden / Reuters

A Swedish dentist who was ruined after being fired and fined for revealing that over 80 percent of his refugee ‘children’ patients were actually adults, told RT that people coming to his country should not lie about their age.

The story of Bernt Herlitz, a dental hygienist from the Swedish island of Gotland, came under the spotlight in 2016 when he revealed an unpleasant truth. Herlitz was analyzing the teeth of “unaccompanied” minor migrants who started to arrive in the Scandinavian country as the worst refugee crisis since WWII struck Europe. It turned out that wisdom teeth of the ‘children’ were fully grown in 80 percent of cases, a sign clearly showing that Herlitz’ patients were far from being underage. 

“If you have an X-ray you can easily see that the person is over or under 18 years old. About 80 percent were grown-ups,” he said, speaking to RT.

Herlitz shared his concerns with an immigration officer who advised him to file a report about his findings. Yet the reaction from his employers was not so bright – they fired him, arguing he'd violated medical confidentiality.

“I was fired because I followed the instruction that the woman from the immigration office gave me. I sent an email to the immigration office that I could confirm those people were over 18 years old,” he continued.

The dental hygienist then sued his employers and won damages. But the Region of Gotland appealed to the highest labor court in Stockholm and hired one of Sweden’s top-ranking lawyers “to crush” him, as he says on his website. On July 4 he learned that he lost his case and also admitted “economically bankrupted him and his family.” The dentist, who had worked in the sector for 10 years, was fined some 475,000 kroner ($54,000).

Bernt Herlitz

Fearing bankruptcy, 56-year-old Bernt, who is married with an eight-year-old daughter, called for help and in several days already raised more than a half of the total amount.

Bernt believes that he had done a right thing for exposing the migrants lying about their age. “I don't think they should lie to come to Sweden,” he explained.

The worst thing about this is that his employer expected him to lie, or to refuse to tell the truth. This is Sweden's extreme left attitude that has got them into so much trouble, and is rapidly resulting in cultural suicide.

The problem of adult refugees claiming to be “unaccompanied minors” is not new in Europe, which has been facing a large influx of migrants since 2015. A German government report leaked to media revealed in 2017 that some 43 percent of migrants in the country who claim to be children are actually adults. In Denmark such a number stands at 74 percent.

Some migrants provide false data on their age, seemingly in order to get more benefits from the welfare systems of the European countries. However, others claim to be ‘children’ in an apparent attempt to be tried as juveniles for alleged crimes. 

In either event their intent is criminal, and yet they are often protected by governments, courts, and the public. How insane is that?

An Afghani immigrant, Hussein Khavari, accused of raping and murdering a 19-year-old German woman, turned out to be an adult. At the time of his arrest, Hussein told police he was 17 years old. However, after analysis of one of the suspect’s teeth from the upper jaw showed that the accused was about 26 years old, probably 30.

Maria Ladenburger was the daughter of an EU official. Khavari had earlier raped and murdered a girl in Greece, but in an astonishingly evil move, Greek officials allowed him to migrate to Germany without any warnings. Germany's doors were so wide-open, he just walked in.

10 OF THE TOP PERSECUTORS OF CHRISTIANS AROUND THE WORLD TODAY

You will notice that 6 of the 10 are Muslim organizations

by Joshua Pease in Stories of Persecution

The persecution of Christians is increasing year over year. Across the globe, more than 215 million believers face intimidation, prison—even death—for their faith in Jesus Christ. That’s one in twelve Christians worldwide.

While religious persecution is spread over many countries, there are some areas where the hostility is particularly intense. These pockets of concentrated persecution are due to the focused efforts of either one person or a larger system bent on smashing or squeezing out Christians in the region.

The list below highlights some of the greatest human rights offenders toward Christians. The list is not comprehensive or in particular order, and there are many more who could be added.

We share this list not to stir up anger—although righteous anger is expected—but to move us all toward prayer and action. Jesus commanded us, directly, to pray for our enemies. So please use this list as a powerful prayer tool.

As Brother Andrew, the founder of Open Doors says, no door is closed to the power of prayer. Through prayer, we have the ability to move beyond borders and into the very presence of our enemies…

Pray that God would stop their actions, change their hearts and shine the brilliant light of the gospel onto their path—much like He did with the apostle Paul, one of the most aggressive persecutors in the time of the early church.

Here are some of the top persecutors of Christians worldwide. 

1. ISIS

For nearly 2,000 years, Christianity has had a presence in countries like Iraq; however, the brutal and targeted attacks from ISIS have driven many Christians to flee these areas. Ten years ago, there were nearly 1 million Christians living in Iraq, with a large majority of the population living in Mosul. Today, ISIS has been driven out of Iraq and Syria for the most part, but now they are spreading to Southeast Asia. Abū Bakr al-Baghdadi is the current leader of ISIS in western Iraq, Syria, Libya and Afghanistan.

2. AL-QAEDA

While ISIS has been in the news lately, Al-Qaeda has continued to fight in countries throughout the Middle East, often marking Christian communities as specific targets. In countries like Yemen, Christian converts from Islam are particularly vulnerable as they are already treated as outcasts by their own communities. As Al-Qaeda takes advantage of distracted governments, Christians in their path experience intense persecution. Ayman al-Zawahiri, is the current leader of Al-Qaeda.

3. KIM JONG-UN

North Korea has for years been one of the worst persecutors of the Christian church. Kim Jong-un has only increased this terrible legacy, continuing the nation’s policy of outlawing any practice of the Christian faith. Prayer, church meetings and owning a Bible are all against the law, with violators being sent to prison camps, or even facing the death penalty.It’s because of this that North Korea is the #1 worst persecutor of Christians in the world according to the 2018 World Watch List.

4. HINDU NATIONALISTS

The far-right Hindu nationalist movement in India seeks to wipe out any religious expression, including Christianity, that falls outside of the Hindu faith. The movement’s mission is to make India a complete Hindu nation by 2021. The predominant Hindu nationalist association is referred to as the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh). This movement has created a culture war and made it very dangerous and difficult for many Christians living in the region who are often forced out of villages, beaten and arrested for believing in Jesus.

5. AL-SHABAAB

The radical Islamic terrorist group al-Shabaab is in many ways the Eastern African version of al-Qaeda (a group they once had an uneasy union with). Al-Shabaab has terrorized the country of Somalia for the past decade and is recently focusing its attacks on the neighboring country of Kenya. In 2015,  a Kenya college campus faced an attack where Christian students were specifically targeted, killing 148 in total. Any place al-Shabaab controls operates under Sharia law, which includes the slaughtering of anyone who identifies as Christian.

6. BOKO HARAM

Boko Haram made global news when it kidnapped over 200 girls from a local school (when the world took notice and responded with #BringBackOurGirls); however, this was nothing new for the Nigerian Islamic terrorist group who have kidnapped thousands of people, many who are children.

The word “haram” means forbidden, and Boko Haram’s belief is that any sort of Western influence is heresy, especially Christianity. To this end, Boko Haram has conducted raids, bombings and assassinations against any target it deems Western, especially churches and schools. They have taken out contracts on influential Christian leaders and are also at war with the Nigerian government.

7. MILITANT FULANI HERDSMEN

In northern Nigeria’s Middle Belt area, the latest threat to Christian communities may arguably be even worse than Boko Haram: the Hausa-Fulani Muslim Herdsman. Clashes with militants among the predominantly Muslim group have claimed thousands of Christian lives as they raze entire villages and brutally kill and rape. However, unlike the atrocities and attacks of Boko Haram, Fulani violence has gone relatively unreported in national news headlines.

8. RADICAL ISLAM

In Pakistan, bombings, attacks and threats toward Christians by radical Islam are prevalent

Islamic Oppression is one of the most widely recognized sources of persecution for Christians in the world today—and it continues to spread—aiming to bring many parts of the world under Sharia Law. The movement, which often results in Islamic militancy and persecution of Christians, is expanding in Asia (Philippines, Bangladesh, Indonesia) and Africa (Egypt, Nigeria, Somalia).

9. DRUG CARTELS

Threats toward Christians in Latin America often come at the hands of violent drug cartels

In Colombia and Mexico, drug cartels are prevalent in certain parts of the country. On top of the danger that these groups bring to ordinary citizens, Christians are specifically targeted. “A soul won for Jesus is a soul lost for them,” shared one pastor from Colombia. “They know that too.”

For this reason, Christian evangelists are particularly targeted. Drug cartel leaders know that they are the greatest threat to their way of life.

10. THE ULTIMATE ENEMY

It’s easy to read this list and feel hopeless in the face of so much evil. However, in Ephesians 6 we’re told our war isn’t a physical war, it’s a spiritual one. Behind all of the atrocities listed above is Satan, who prowls this world as a roaring lion.

But we are also told that God’s kingdom is forcefully advancing, and that in the end, Satan is overthrown and all things are made new.

So as we pray against the evil mentioned in this article, we can also pray hopefully that God’s kingdom would come, and His will would be done. Here on earth now, and then in completion for eternity.

STAND WITH THE PERSECUTED

‘You Have to Call it by Name’: Merkel Publicly Admits ‘No-Go Areas’ in Germany

The New Normal - Muslim No-Go Zones in Germany

Migrants stay outside the Berlin Office of Health and Social Affairs (LAGESO), October 12, 2015 /

Hannibal Hanschke / Reuters

“No-go areas” do exist in Germany, Angela Merkel admitted in an interview, adding that the arrival of “so many refugees” in the country “has raised multiple questions.”

Speaking with RTL, Merkel acknowledged that there are areas in Germany where people cannot feel safe. She also made it clear that it’s time for the authorities to do something in order to ensure public safety.

“It's always a point to me that [ensuring] domestic security is the state's obligation, the state has the monopoly of power, the state has to make sure that people have the right to it whenever they meet and move in a public space,” Merkel argued.

She then took aim at “no-go areas,” which gained notoriety all across Europe during the refugee influx that reached its peak in 2015. Merkel bluntly dismissed the claim that 'no-go areas' are non-existent in Germany, stressing instead that “there are such spaces, and you have to call that by name and you have to do something about it.”

Merkel, who is steps away from her official fourth term as the Germany chancellor, said her government had a “tough time” in the past. She then referred to harsh criticism over her “open-door policy” and her reluctance to set an upper limit for the new refugee arrivals: “Of course, the arrival of so many refugees has raised multiple questions.”

However, some critics said that Merkel did not allow much self-criticism during her speech. Merkel is not known to have said that she wouldn’t have acted another way when the migrant crisis broke out.

While the chancellor refrained from touching upon the subject of rising violent crime among refugees, her interview came several weeks after a government-sponsored study showed a drastic increase in violent crime committed by male migrants aged 14 to 30. 

The massive influx of asylum seekers led to a spike in violent criminal acts, the study, which was conducted by a group of criminologists and forensic experts, stated. The review was conducted at the request of the German Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth.

Refugee policy became the subject of extensive negotiations between Merkel’s conservatives and the Social Democrats when the two discussed reaching a coalition agreement earlier this year. The agreement, among other points, emphasized the need to crack down on human traffickers and “massive strengthening” of the EU border agency Frontex.

This is good! Unlike some European countries, Merkel is not ignoring the problem of violent behaviour from migrants, nor is she pretending it doesn't exist. 

Persecution of Christians Intensifies in 2017: 3,066 Were Killed

Although it seems to be a thing of the past, people are still killed for believing in God and, unfortunately, many of them, 3,066 to be exact, in 2017. 

The NGO Open Doors' report shows alarming numbers for another year. In 2017, persecution of Christians worsened to the extent that, each month, 322 Christians were killed for their faith. In total, in the 50 countries analyzed by the organization, some 250 million Christians suffer some form of violence that ranges from hostility or discrimination to extreme persecution or murder. 

The report reveals that one out of every three people in the world live in a country without religious freedom. There are five countries in which widespread persecution of Christians exists. In Pakistan, antiblasphemy law has become a tool for the constant oppression of Christians. In Sudan, Christians are frequently accused of espionage, and the government wants the Church to be under its control. In Somalia, conversions cost lives. A converted Christian can be killed by his or her own family. In Afghanistan, there are very few Christians and, when a Muslim converts, he or she receives death threats or is assassinated. At the top of the list is North Korea, where the simple act of having a Bible puts an entire family in danger. Thousands of Christians fill concentration camps because, to the Kin Jong-un regime, Christians are enemies of the state. 

Not even a mention of Egypt where Muslims blow up Coptic Christians for sport, or Nigeria where murdering Christians and kidnapping Christian girls for use as slaves and sex slaves happens quite regularly.

There's also reason for hope, though. There are places where, after darkness, there has been a new step into the light, like in Iraq. Open Doors is one of the Christian organizations that works to give back what extremism has robbed of thousands of people. This protestant organization collaborates with the Syrian-Catholics of Mosul.

In Syria as well as Iraq, the defeat of the self-proclaimed Islamic State has alleviated the pressure on Christians, but both countries still remain at the top of the black list.