Iraq: Fallujah refugees suffering
Since Fallujah was all but liberated last Friday, people have escaped to four camps outside the city that were already brimming with thousands of families who fled when the fighting began in May. These makeshift camps face a humanitarian crisis. 80,000+ are without shelter and sufficient water, in temperatures of 46 C and sandstorms. There’s sporadic electricity and a shortage of latrines. At one camp they treat 1,200 people a day suffering from malnutrition and other ailments. Conditions are miserable. New arrivals put a strain on Iraq’s cash-strapped government and aid organisations trying to meet the demand for basic needs of food, drinking water, and health care. Thousands are barred from seeking refuge with relatives in Baghdad because of suspected sympathies with IS. Allowing these families to proceed would significantly ease the burden on the camps. Pray that women, children, the sick and vulnerable may leave camps and settle with relatives in safety.
Iran: increase in sex-trafficking
Prostitution and sex-trafficking take place in Tehran, and the number of women working in the profession is growing. The government agency charged with overseeing morality is turning a blind eye to the issue, to avoid dealing with something ‘not spoken about’ by the state. In twelve months 32 brothels were discovered in Tehran. Most women go into the profession to avoid extreme poverty, many being sold into prostitution by their husbands to make ends meet. There are 100+ young girls in Tehran making 2 - 20 dollars per client. 35% of prostitutes are married women with children. Others are involved in ‘pleasure marriages’ (temporary couplings recognised by Shi'ite Islam to conceal the fact that they are engaged in prostitution). These marriages are decided upon by men, without the woman's consent, and accompanied by a payment given by the man. When women become pregnant, the babies are abandoned on the street and later used for other purposes.
Bangladesh: 2,000 Christians pray
Christians and Hindus make up 10% of Bangladesh's population of mainly Sunni Muslims. On Monday 2,000 Bangladeshi Christians from various denominations prayed for ‘humanity to wake up’ to the growing threat of Islamic terrorism in the country. They prayed for a country of unity, peace and harmony, for a dormant humanity to become aware of the persecution, violence and murders committed in secret. They asked God to bless the terrorists so that they change their minds. The prayers were led by Catholic and Protestant clergymen. ‘We live in fear because every day ordinary folks become victims of Islamic militants. For this reason, we urge Christian leaders to call on humanity to wake up’, said Father Kamal Corraya. ‘There is no place for violence in the teachings of Jesus Christ,’ said the moderator of the Protestant Church of Bangladesh.
Nigeria: starving to death
Doctors without Borders (MSF) said a ‘catastrophic humanitarian emergency’ is unfolding at a camp in Bama where 24,000 people have taken refuge from Boko Haram and nearly 200 have starved to death in the past month. Many are traumatised and one in five children are suffering from acute malnutrition. Thirty people die every day due to hunger or illness. MSF's visit to the camp was only possible with an army escort. Violence in Nigeria is widespread, perpetrated by Boko Haram, ethnic groups, farmers and herdsmen who resort to violence. Some acts of violence have religious overtones, and a new generation of Niger Delta militants are threatening war against the state. Government soldiers kill civilians indiscriminately, and police are notorious for extrajudicial murder. Between May 2011 and June 2016 there were 15,588 deaths perpetrated solely by Boko Haram and another 12,962 deaths perpetrated by terrorists and state combined. See:
