Middle East Briefing – March 2023
March 2023As Türkiye and Syria begin to pick up the pieces after being rocked by earthquakes, there was a diplomatic breakthrough for Saudi Arabia and Iran and pardons for Iranian protesters Thousands of aftershocks have continued five weeks after two powerful earthquakes struck Türkiye near its Syrian border. More than 48,000 people in Türkiye and 7,000 in Syria lost their lives and over 1.5 […]
Middle East Briefing – February 2023
February 2023A week after twin earthquakes in Türkiye destroyed buildings across an area the size of Germany the human scale of the disaster was becoming clear. By Sunday the combined death toll in Türkiye and Syria had passed 33,000, the number of lives claimed in Türkiye’s 1939 quake. Reports spoke of towns where 80 per cent of buildings had been levelled […]
The Briefing – January 2023
January 2023At the start of a new year, what countries and developments should we be watching? Where should we be focusing our prayers? High in our concerns this year must be the nation of Iran. “In the midst of all the bad news we are hearing there is only one piece of good news. It is that Christ is the Lord […]
Middle East Briefing – November 2022
November 2022The world’s eyes are on the Middle East this month, drawn by the courageous protests in Iran, a bombing in the heart of Istanbul and world gatherings in Egypt and Qatar for COP27 and the World Cup respectively. Women-led protests in Iran calling for an end to repression have continued into a ninth week. This is despite the arrests of […]
Middle East Briefing – October 2022
October 2022Protests in Iran have entered a fourth week. The country is still raging over the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini who was detained for incorrectly wearing the hijab. Since then, young women who courageously removed and set fire to their headscarves have inspired protests in many parts of the country, uniting people of diverse religious, ethnic and cultural […]
Middle East Briefing – September 2022
September 2022The death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth ll led the news in many Middle East states last weekend and prompted messages of condolence from national leaders. Jordan and Lebanon respectively declared seven and three days of mourning. The patriarch of Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Christians, Pope Tawadros ll, led Christian tributes when he said he was “personally thankful for the interaction […]
The Middle East Briefing – July 2022
July 2022Tensions with Iran are producing unlikely alliances in the Middle East, while the importance of religious freedom was highlighted this month at a major international conference in London. Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) was a major focus this month when nearly 700 politicians, faith leaders and activists from over 100 countries gathered in London for the fourth International Ministerial […]
THE MIDDLE EAST BRIEFING – JUNE 2022
June 2022It was UK Prime Minister Harold Macmillan who, in 1958, tweaked a Winston Churchill statement to say “jaw-jaw is better than war-war”. Happily, this month sees some examples – though not enough – of renewed dialogue bringing hope of peace and democracy to parts of the Middle East. News that US President Joe Biden is set to visit Saudi Arabia […]