SAT-7’s Middle East Briefing brings you a monthly roundup of news from the Middle East and North Africa, with a particular focus on the experiences of believers and the challenges facing the Church in the region. It’s available as a long-read article, or as a 7-minute podcast. Read the articles below or listen to all our latest podcast episodes here. You can also listen and subscribe on Spotify, Apple or Google Podcasts – just search “The Middle East Briefing”.
MIDDLE EAST BRIEFING NOVEMBER 2024
November 2024Over a year since the Hamas-led attack on Israel, conflict in the Middle East has continued to escalate, leaving around 2 million people displaced. But despite the ongoing conflicts, SAT-7 continues to broadcast messages of hope to the region – and viewers keep getting in touch with stories of God at work in their lives. In this month’s Briefing, we’ll […]
Emergency Country Briefing: Lebanon
October 2024With tensions remaining high in the region and air strikes and ground operations impacting thousands of Lebanese families, we’ve released an Emergency Country Briefing looking at Lebanon in more detail. We’ll look at how Christians are responding to the unfolding situation and hear from one of SAT-7’s directors in Lebanon, Sarah Soueidy, about how the team are keeping faith and […]
MIDDLE EAST BRIEFING SEPTEMBER 2024
September 2024A lot has happened in the Israel-Hamas war over the last two months, though a ceasefire expected since May has yet to emerge. As the one-year anniversary of the current conflict rapidly approaches, the suffering continues with no foreseeable end – and people in the wider region, particularly in Lebanon, live under the constant threat of further escalation. Churches appeal […]
The Tajikistan Briefing
August 2024In this month’s Country Briefing, we journey to the easternmost reaches of SAT-7’s satellite footprint: the Central Asian nation of Tajikistan. The presenter of a new Tajik women’s talk show shares with us the difficulties faced by Christians in Tajikistan, but also how God is using SAT-7 to build His Church there. Click here to listen to the 7-minute audio […]
Middle East Briefing – July 2024
July 2024“We urgently need to find our way back to peace in line with the UN Charter [of Human Rights] and international law.” This was the impassioned message that Volker Türk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, sent to the 56th session of the UN Human Rights Council last month. Prominent among the examples he gave were Gaza, Sudan, Syria […]
Country Briefing – June 2024
June 2024SUDAN BRIEFING: Church perseveres in faith and love amid conflict Nicknamed “the forgotten war”, the conflict that erupted in Sudan last April has taken a devastating toll on its people. The fighting has displaced over 8 million people and left around 25 million in need of humanitarian aid. Almost 15,000 deaths have been reported, but the true figure is likely […]
Middle East Briefing – May 2024
May 2024Freedom and security seem ever more elusive in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). This month, we bring you various reports on religious freedom, women’s rights and press freedom, as well as more hopeful news from Syria. Freedom of religion and of belief is “being challenged more and more” around the world, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom […]
Middle East Briefing – April 2024
April 2024While conflict in the Holy Land and the fresh involvement of Iran dominates headlines, a war between generals continues to ravage Sudan, and Türkiye expresses an appetite for change in political leadership. The Middle East found itself on a knife-edge last weekend after Iran launched 300 missiles and drones at Israel – the Islamic Republic’s first direct assault on Israel […]