Prayer Alert
Saturday, 16 November 2013 14:59

'Mother ship' traffickers arrested off Libya

The Italian navy has arrested 16 human traffickers aboard a so-called ‘mother ship’ in international waters off Libya. The ship was located some 500 kilometres southeast of Sicily, near Libya, the Navy said on Sunday. Submarine surveillance ahead of Saturday's raid was ‘of particular importance, notably for gathering proof’ against the traffickers, the Navy said in a statement. The fishing boat served as a staging area from which the traffickers dispatched their clients - Syrian migrants seeking asylum or a better life - aboard smaller, often rickety vessels to destinations in southern Europe. The boat had been under surveillance, including by drones, hi-tech radars, night-vision equipment and the submarine, under stepped-up operations launched after two shipwrecks last month claimed some 500 lives.

Praise: God for the success of the Italian Navy in bringing these traffickers to justice. (Pr.21:15)

More: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2013/11/ship-traffickers-arrested-off-libya-201311101523733505.html

 

 

On the 7 May the United Kingdom will hold Elections for the House of Commons, but seven other countries will also be holding parliamentary elections between now and then: Finland with election for Parliament on 19 April; Haiti has an Election for Chamber of Deputies on 24 April; Anguilla with election for House of Assembly on 25 April; Togo has an election for President on 25 April; Benin an election for National Assembly on 26l; Kazakhstan holds an election for President on 26 and Tanzania has a Referendum on 30l. For further Insights into how to pray for these and other elections in 2015 click the ' 'More' button below.

On the 7 May the United Kingdom will hold Elections for the House of Commons, but seven other countries will also be holding parliamentary elections between now and then: Finland with election for Parliament on 19 April; Haiti has an Election for Chamber of Deputies on 24 April; Anguilla with election for House of Assembly on 25 April; Togo has an election for President on 25 April; Benin an election for National Assembly on 26l; Kazakhstan holds an election for President on 26 and Tanzania has a Referendum on 30l. For further Insights into how to pray for these and other elections in 2015 click the ' 'More' button below.

One hundred and eleven Pakistani Christians were arrested in March following the lynching of two Muslim men wrongly thought to be involved in killing 17 Christians and church bombings. 30 prisoners have now been released and International Christian Concern announced on Tuesday that the 30 men and boys had been subjected to torture and merciless beatings by police officers in an attempt to extract confessions out of them. Many of the detained were innocent. In early April, 16 Christians were indicted for the murder of the two Muslim men and 12 indicted for damage to state property. This incident is the tip of the iceberg of the discrimination and persecution that religious minorities endure - from indentured servitude, forced conversions to kidnapping for ransom. The most recent atrocity happened last weekend when a 14-year-old Christian boy was beaten and set on fire after answering truthfully when he was asked by Muslim men if he was a Christian. See:

An anonymous donor has given £1.5 million in an ‘ordinary-looking envelope’ to Bath Abbey to help with its £18 million restoration scheme. The donation is the largest the Abbey has ever received from a private individual. The donor explained that the main reason behind the gift was that he was: ‘much impressed by the care and the consultation which has been put in by the Abbey, which is such a vital part of Bath's future.’ He continues by saying that: ‘This generation has a solemn duty to ensure the Abbey is fit and able to carry out its service to the city and the community for the next hundred years.’ The money will go to the Abbey's £19.3 million Footprint project, aimed at stabilising the building's collapsing floor and introducing an under-floor heating system using Bath's famous hot springs as an energy source. It will also improve the Abbey's visitor facilities.

Thursday, 16 April 2015 01:00

Victory in Lowestoft sex shop case

Councillors in Lowestoft have rejected a licensing application for the opening of a Sex Entertainment Venue in the town centre. The case was supported by the Christian Legal Centre. This was the third licensing application for a Sex Entertainment Venue to be heard by Lowestoft councillors in a period of just 12 months. In February 2014, local residents expressed concern after a licence was granted for the opening of a sex club in the town, despite strong opposition from members of the Lowestoft community. After several months, it transpired that the proposed venue would no longer go ahead. However, in autumn 2014, a second application was made for the opening of a lap dancing club in the town centre, which was also rejected after residents, businesses and churches objected and three petitions were submitted. A third application was then made, this time for a sex shop in the town. But earlier this year, councillors rejected it after the Christian Legal Centre again supported local residents in opposing the plans.

The UK will no longer tolerate the behaviour of Islamist extremists who ‘reject our values’, Home Secretary Theresa May has said. She invited individuals, families and communities to join a ‘partnership’ to tackle the issue head on. Mrs May said everyone in Britain had ‘responsibilities as well as rights’, and must respect laws, institutions and the rights of others. Speaking in London, she also outlined plans to ban hate preachers. She announced Tory plans for a review of Sharia courts in England and Wales to examine whether they are compatible with British values.' We will no longer tolerate your behaviour. We will expose your hateful beliefs for what they are.’ An Islamic State fighter has called for the death of Home Secretary Theresa May following the speech she made on Monday in which she called on British Muslims to help defeat extremism.

Researchers compared the TV viewing habits of more than 6,000 British people born in a single week in 1970, at the ages of 10 and 42. Parents should increase children's physical activity to ensure they become fit and healthy adults, the University College London (UCL) authors conclude. ‘Do something active to displace TV,’ advised co-author Lee Smith. ‘In the evening time when families tend to sit down and watch TV they should try to go for walks instead.’ If you can't go outside, try active computer games, anything that gets people up and expending energy rather than sitting down and snacking,’ said Dr Smith, of the UCL epidemiology and public health department. The authors acknowledge that for today's children TV viewing is often replaced by time on computers, smartphones or tablets. Parents should play active computer games with their children, say researchers.

Stress levels among teachers in England's classrooms are soaring, a BBC investigation has found. Unions are blaming workload for large numbers of staff taking time off work or leaving the profession. Insurance industry data suggest stress is the biggest cause of staff absence save for maternity. The Department for Education insists it is working ‘to tackle the issue of unnecessary workload which we know can lead to stress’. The BBC has also seen a survey of 3,500 members of the NASUWT teaching union which shows more than two-thirds of respondents considered quitting the profession in the past year. Workload was the top concern, with 89% citing this as a problem, followed by pay (45%), inspection (44%), curriculum reform (42%) and pupil behaviour (40%). In addition: NASUWT General Secretary Chris Keates described the results as ‘frightening’. Education Secretary Nicky Morgan Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has expressed her concerns over excessive working hours.

Faith leaders across the UK have signed a statement calling on nuclear weapons states to join with other states to implement new approaches to eliminate nuclear arsenals. Ahead of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference meeting from 27 April to 22 May 2015, senior representatives from eight faiths in the UK, including Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist, have given their backing to a statement calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons. The faith leaders argue that nuclear arsenals ‘violate the principle of dignity for every human being that is common to each of our faith traditions’. The statement urges nuclear weapons states to ‘develop a robust plan of action that will lead us to a nuclear weapon free world’ but in recent years, the UK government has strongly resisted proposals for negotiation of a new treaty that would lead to the elimination of such weapons.