While the COVID-19 pandemic continued to add new layers of distress in the region, there were signs of God at work. WATCH NOW: SAT-7 TÜRK reports on the easing of restrictions in Turkey Turkey was one of the first countries to be affected by the virus. Initially, its response was more successful than that of most European countries and […]
Public attention at home and in the Middle East and North Africa understandably turned inward in recent months as we faced the COVID-19 pandemic. But for others the pandemic has been a cover for more menacing activities. Since January 2020 there has been a surge in attacks by so-called Islamic State (IS) groups in Syria and Iraq. Eastern areas of […]
Passover, Easter and soon Ramadan will be marked in isolation in the Middle East this year. We look at how alarm over a string of man-made conflicts in the region has been overtaken by fear of a new enemy and how countries are responding. You could be forgiven for forgetting the fear that circled the globe following the US strike […]
Amid popular protests and a violent crackdown on demonstrators in Iran, SAT-7 viewers in the country have been sharing their worries, fears and prayers with the channel. While other Christian media normally watched online was unavailable, SAT-7’s satellite TV broadcasts continued to offer biblical guidance and support during an internet blackout(1) and the channel’s Audience Relations team have been available […]
A religious feast brought a temporary reprieve to conflict-ridden Libya, while political changes and protests dominated its North African neighbours. The region marked one of the two main Islamic holidays this month. Eid al-Adha marks Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, and Muslims celebrate either by slaughtering a lamb and distributing its meat to those in need or by donating […]
Amidst heightened tensions in the Persian Gulf and political standoffs and transitions from Turkey to North Africa, the cause of persecuted Christians was remembered in Iraq and in a UK Foreign Office report. Sudan remained in the headlines as the first mass demonstrations were held since the massacre at a sit-in protest last month. Protesters again took to the streets […]
A live episode of SAT-7 worship programme Keep on Singing became a focus for intercession for a country that was reeling from a day of bloodshed. During the 4 June broadcast, Sudanese Pastor Philemon Hassan wiped away tears as he sang a prayer for peace in his nation, only hours after scores of protesters were killed in the violent clearing […]
Events in Sudan and the Gulf of Oman dominated headlines this month as the Middle East seemed set for a dangerous summer. Violence overtook months of peaceful protest in Sudan on 3 June. So-called Rapid Support Forces used live ammunition, severe beatings and rape to disperse a sit-in outside army headquarters in Khartoum. Two months before, pro-democracy demonstrators had succeeded […]
New developments are taking us into some uncharted territories in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Yet the familiar cycles of violence and patterns of control prevail. The plight of Middle Eastern Christians has been highlighted this month by an interim report commissioned by the UK government, which warned that they face being “wiped out” from parts of […]
New complications in the region’s conflicts are threatening to divide powerful allies. At the end of last year, there was an emerging view that the Syrian war had reached its peak and was starting to de-escalate. The last few weeks, however, have pointed in the opposite direction, with some of the fiercest aerial bombing campaigns by forces loyal to Assad […]
