Grace discovers faith, pain and a shared understanding when she meets Iraqi Christians sheltering in Jordan It is interesting how God often speaks to us, beautifully and inspirationally, when we least expect it. Returning last month from a short visit to the USA, I had to go through Jordan, as Palestinians are not allowed to travel through the Israeli airport. […]
While Middle East Muslims observed the Ramadan fast during the height of summer, a wave of terrorist attacks sent shockwaves across the world. News from the region Terrorist attacks in Tunisia, Egypt, and Kuwait this month shook the region and impacted many lives beyond it. ISIS-affiliated militants sought to do multiple things with these killings. Attacking Western holiday makers in […]
Two Christian refugees look for hope in Jordan and Kurdistan One year ago (9 June 2014), the Iraqi city of Mosul fell to militants belonging to a Sunni Muslim movement calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS. Thousands of Christians and other religious minorities, threatened with execution, fled. These are the stories of two who have […]
While Turkey geared up for elections which could have long-term internal and regional ramifications, the war against ISIS and proxy battles in Yemen dominated elsewhere. Christians in Turkey had reason to celebrate but faced discrimination in Egypt, Israel and Iran. News from the region On 7 June, Turkish citizens will vote in what is seen as one of the most […]
Increased interventions by Saudi Arabia impact Yemen and Syria, while descendants of Ottoman Armenians remember their “Great Catastrophe”. News from the region Changes in Saudi Arabia’s royal family structure are slowly but increasingly affecting the region. The appointments and foreign policy moves made by King Salman (crowned head of state in January) demonstrate a far more proactive Saudi Arabia in […]
Best friends Myriam (10) and Sandra (9), who were driven from their homes in Iraq by so-called Islamic State (IS) last year and ended up in different countries, were brought together on a live SAT-7 KIDS show. The youngsters were reunited over a video phone call during an episode of Let’s Sing Together marking eastern Easter on 12 April. They […]
The whirlwind that is the Middle East never ends. Taking centre stage in this month’s developments have been Yemen, Iran and Tunisia. News from the region The most promising development – albeit still unclear – has been a provisional agreement reached with Iran over its nuclear enrichment. While the details are yet to be made public or clearly outlined, a […]
The Archbishop of Canterbury recorded a message of solidarity for Middle East Christians last week when he was interviewed by SAT-7’s Forbidden programme The Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Revd Justin Welby, has shared his heart for people of the Middle East enduring the violence wrought by ISIS in an interview for Middle East Christian broadcaster SAT-7. Archbishop Welby spoke last […]
SAT-7 Egypt Director sees impact of “Resistance through forgiveness” The videos of a ten-year-old Iraqi displaced by IS (Islamic State) and of a brother of two Egyptian labourers beheaded in Libya both voicing forgiveness for their persecutors have been watched by a million viewers and drawn the attention of mainstream Arab media which rarely covers Christian news. Under the title […]
2015 continues to be a challenging year for the region and the church. But, faced with death, faithful Christians – and the communities they belonged to – have offered the region a radical lesson in forgiveness and human dignity. News from the Region While the brutalities of ISIS continued, there were growing preparations for military campaigns against its advances in […]