Ukraine: Pray for refugees’ protection
The International Justice Mission (IJM) reminds us that the Ukraine conflict has displaced millions of women and children across Europe who are now running out of savings and resources, making them vulnerable to false work offers or accommodation from traffickers. The UN warns that Ukraine’s war is turning into a ‘human trafficking crises’. We need to cry out to God for women and children’s protection, that they would find safe housing and a stable income, to avoid accepting offers from traffickers. Please pray that they would know God's peace and comfort at this time of great difficulty. Pray for the expansion of IJM's anti-trafficking work in Europe. Ukraine’s refugee crisis means they urgently need to expand their anti-trafficking work into more European countries to reach and protect more vulnerable people. Pray for more local churches and European communities to accept and help refugees and may God mightily bless those volunteers already welcoming Ukrainians into their communities.
Ukraine: Zelensky urges G7 ‘help us win by year end’
Ukraine: Zelensky urges G7 ‘help us win by year end’
NATO is increasing the troops available to its response force from the current 40,000 and will strengthen forward defences. The military alliance's secretary-general said, ‘We will enhance our battle groups in the eastern part of the alliance, up to brigade levels. We will transform the NATO response force and increase the number of our high readiness forces to well over 300,000.’ He describes Russia as the most significant and direct threat to the alliance's security and values and the NATO response to the invasion of Ukraine as the biggest overhaul of its collective defence and deterrence since the Cold War. Meanwhile, British troops are training Ukrainian soldiers on multiple-launch rocket systems and light guns on Salisbury Plain. A Royal Artillery trainer said it was a privilege to train the Ukrainians, they are professional rocket artillerymen. Their motivation to be quick and to learn is incredible. They don’t take many breaks. They are here to learn and are keen to return to Ukraine ‘as soon as possible’.
Mali: Jihadis kill 132 civilians
Attacks by jihadi rebels in central Mali have killed 132 civilians, showing that Islamic extremist violence is spreading from Mali’s north to more central areas. For several weeks rebels have been blocking the road between Gao in the north and Mopti in central Mali. The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali is concerned by the extremist attacks against civilians in the Bandiagara region that have caused casualties and displaced populations. In a separate incident, a U.N. peacekeeper died from injuries sustained from an improvised explosive device. Since the beginning of 2022, several attacks have killed U.N. uniformed peacekeepers. Attacks on peacekeepers constitute war crimes. The U.N. peacekeeping mission began after France went there to remove rebels who were capturing cities and major towns the year before (2014). They currently have 12,000 troops, 2,000 police and other officers in Mali. Over 270 peacekeepers have died in the U.N.’s deadliest peacekeeping mission.
Global: Probes into migrant deaths
Five human rights organisations want Spain and Morocco to investigate the deaths of 18 migrants, the injuries of 76 others, and the actions of 140 Moroccan security officers when migrants attempted to scale a fence separating the two countries. Spain's Commission for Refugees decried ‘indiscriminate use of violence to manage migration and control borders had prevented people who were eligible for international protection from reaching Spanish soil’. Meanwhile, UNHCR is asking both Africa and Europe to enhance legal frameworks and operational capacities at land and sea borders and urban centres plus youth programming and local community-based development as alternatives to dangerous journeys. In America the bodies of 51 dead migrants were discovered inside a lorry in San Antonio. An official said they found ‘stacks of bodies and no water in the truck. Sixteen survivors are in hospital with heat stroke and exhaustion, including four minors. No children were among the dead. See
