Displaying items by tag: Afghanistan

Thousands of missionaries worldwide depend on our prayers for strength. Afghanistan is just one of the nations where people groups have not yet heard about Jesus Christ. Cultural traditions that have survived centuries of invasion are guarded and observed, like that of offering extraordinary hospitality. A strong national identity and their characteristic hard work ethic will doubtless serve community members well as Afghanistan rebuilds. In addition to Islamic beliefs, spiritism (using charms and amulets) is also widespread. Pray for the Christians in the extra American military soon to be deployed to Afghanistan by President Trump. May God inspire them with a spirit of evangelism as they meet the locals who have known frequent war and internal tribal strife. Ask God to restore political peace and stability among tribes, and call for more Christian workers who are trained in the various language dialects to enter Afghan’s mission fields. Pray for Christian relief workers in Pakistan as they witness among displaced Afghans. See also https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/14372/AF

Afghanistan is perhaps the most challenging prayer and mission situation on earth? Recently, the Taliban or some other terrorist group attacked some of the Christian workers, killing a key German woman and kidnapping a young Finnish woman, both of whom were lovingly risking their lives to serve the Afghan people. In addition, one of the most evil men on earth has been able to penetrate into the government. Here is a word about him from one of my friends working there:

“The "Butcher of Kabul", Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, has been included now in the government. He is a killer and very cruel and a smart schemer. He has killed a number of Christians, including a Canadian OM brother and the Afghan brother and leader Zia Nodrad. Now he got inside the government in a deal with President Ghani. All the Non-Pashtuns are furious and the government is divided more than before. Please include him always in  prayer till he gets dealt with, besides the other terror groups like Taliban, IS and the Haqqanis.”

1. The Psalms are full of prayers that God would bring down the wicked (Ps. 1:4-6, 7:9, 9:5, 10:15, 11:5-6, 37:10-17). Of course, we hope and pray they might repent, but if Gulbadin Hekmatyar and other ruthlessly evil killers do not, let’s pray that they will be removed from the face of the earth, unable to terrify and destroy any more! A year and a half ago, we prayed about another supremely wicked man trying to use occult means to influence the United Nations and he died the same day the alert went out. Let’s pray now in the same way for the Lord to bring down the wicked and especially this horrifically evil terrorist, Gulbadin Hekmatyar.

2. Pray also for the release or rescue of those who have been kidnapped and for the protection over other brothers and sisters in Christ, both expatriates and Afghan who are living and serving there.

3. Pray for the unity of the Afghan government and for the government of the USA as it plans to commit another 4000 American troops to the battle against the Taliban and other such terrorist groups. May they have victory and may the terrorist groups be thrown into utter confusion and division, fighting against each other until they give up their struggle to take over the nation and institute the awful tyranny sharia law again.

A missionary reports that the Afghan government is demanding that NGOs write more and more reports. For Bible translators, this means more bureaucracy and finding new ways through changes and confusion. They ask us to pray for wisdom for them as they deal with this situation that could drastically affect their ministry. Also, a project for school-children in a major area is undergoing massive changes. Pray for the right strategy and plans for the coming year and for new donors for all their projects, especially in the west of the country. Please pray for a Finnish lady, who is being held captive, to be released unharmed soon. It seems the country is being torn from all sides, and there are increasingly more incidents where the government’s fragile unity is showing cracks. For the recent PA article about a warlord joining the government, see

Ninety died and 400 were injured when a truck bomb shook Kabul's diplomatic quarter, in one of the worst terror incidents to hit Kabul. People struggled to deal with the number of casualties. The damage was enormous. The majority of the dead were civilian men, women and children. In recent years jihadist groups have called for attacks on civilians during Ramadan, which began on 27 May. The explosion raises questions about security procedures. However, on 1 June the president told the BBC Today programme that thirty attacks are foiled for every one that gets through. Three years after David Cameron declared ‘mission accomplished’ and Barack Obama said the American war in Afghanistan was over, this carnage demonstrates the opposite. The West does not want another escalating war, while generals on the ground call for more troops. In 1989 foreign powers turned their backs on Afghanistan, which enabled the Taliban to burgeon. Now, the country cannot be allowed to disintegrate again in the face of IS, with the internet accelerating the dissemination of both ideology and violence. See

“Two people were reportedly killed in Afghanistan and another abducted from a Kabul guesthouse late Saturday, the BBC reported citing a spokesman for the interior ministry.

Among the two people dead, are a German woman and an Afghan guard. The woman abducted meanwhile is reportedly from Finland. This comes after an Australian aid worker was kidnapped in the capital of Afghanistan, last November…

Afghanistan, which is in the grip of an ongoing insurgency by the Taliban Islamist militant group, has witnessed several foreigners kidnapped in the past few years.

The British government have warned of a high and constant threat Westerners face of getting kidnapped in Afghanistan. About 100 people have been kidnapped since 2001, reports said…

“The threat of kidnapping and hostage-taking continues to be very high,” the embassy said in a statement posted on its website. It added that the attempted kidnapping targeted several expatriates, including an American citizen, who were riding in an aid group’s vehicle…

The Afghan police believe the purpose behind the majority of the kidnappings of foreigners is ransom, and these are carried out by criminal gangs. It is feared these criminal groups could sell their hostages to extremist organizations,the New York Timesreported.

International Business Times, May 21, 2017

Please continue to pray for an end to the Taliban insurgency that is causing such widespread harm to the nation and that these wicked, violent Islamic terrorists will be defeated and brought down. Pray for the protection of the humanitarian community working with great love at the risk of their lives to serve the Afghan people. Pray that those still being kept as hostages will be liberated quickly, especially this young Finnish woman that was kidnapped only several days ago.

Just received news of a terrible bombing in the diplomatic area of Kabul that has killed over 80 people and injured hundreds. Pray for His peace and deliverance for this tormented nation and that the Afghans will turn to Christ through these horrors.

A missionary writes, ‘Thank you for praying for our recent International Board meeting (see ). Board members and country directors are freshly united in our vision to see unreached people groups reached with the Good News. We ask for further prayers for an increasingly dangerous situation. The Taliban now control 50% of Afghanistan, and the former Hisbi-i-Islami leader Gulbadin Hekmatyar is ‘working with’ the Afghan government. He is nicknamed the Butcher of Kabul, for killing thousands of Afghans. At a rally in Kabul he asked his Taliban ‘brothers’ to join the peace process while outside the stadium Afghans demonstrated against him. This sad decision by parts of the government has caused further division in the government and the people.’ The inclusion of Hekmatyar in the volatile political powderkeg of Afghan politics is a gamble. He has never been a team player, and has never worked for anyone else. The influence of the Taliban, their allies and IS needs to be completely broken.

On Friday the 21th of April  a group of Taliban attacked a large Afghan Army base close to the Northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif. The Taliban were dressed as soldiers and then killed more than 140 Afghan soldiers and wounded many others. Today is a national day of mourning in the country.

Just on 8th of March Islamic State gunmen dressed as medics attacked a Kabul military hospital in one of the safest areas of the city. About 50 people are said to have died as militants armed with guns, grenades and knives targeted patients and staff at the 400 bed hospital. It looks like the Taliban and IS terrorists can hit any place they chose. This attacks have shown how bad the security is in Afghanistan and the increasing strength of the Taliban and IS.



Please continue to pray that these terror organisations would be stopped and finally defeated. These are huge blows against the Afghan Army that has suffered already heavy causalities in the last year.  Pray for wisdom and courage for the Afghan government and Army. God has to step in and rescue this country from its cruel enemies!

Pray for the Christian humanitarian organizations serving the Afghan people at this great time of need. Pray for their protection and favor in the eyes of the government. Pray that they make bear effective witness and that many will be drawn to Christ through their loving efforts.



The Afghan government does not recognise any of its citizens as Christians, nor is anyone permitted to convert to Christianity. However, there are no laws forbidding proselytism, although the practice is contrary to Muslim beliefs. There is only one legally recognised church - the Catholic chapel at the Italian Embassy - but it is not open to local nationals. There are also Christian religious facilities at foreign military bases, such as an Eastern Orthodox church at the Romanian base in Kandahar. Items and articles belonging to religions other than Islam, such as Bibles, are prohibited. Muslims who change their faith to Christianity are subject to societal and official pressure, which may lead to death. However, many sources claim there is a secret underground church of Afghans. The US state department estimates that the size of this group is between 500 and 8,000 individuals. The complete Bible is available online in Dari, and the New Testament is available in Pashto.

Officials say that six Afghan Red Cross workers have been killed by suspected IS group gunmen in the province of Jowzjan. Two others are unaccounted for, feared abducted by the gunmen. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) confirmed the deaths, but said it did not know who was to blame. The ICRC said it is putting its work in Afghanistan on temporary hold. ‘We need to understand more clearly what happened; this is one of the most critical humanitarian contexts, and we will definitely do everything to continue our operations there,’ said ICRC director of operations Dominik Stillhart. IS has been operating in Afghanistan since 2015, claiming responsibility for attacks in Kabul and the east. But there has been no immediate claim for the attack in Jowzjan.

Up to thirty people were killed and 80 wounded in twin bombings near the parliament in the capital, Kabul. Blasts at the governor's guesthouse in Kandahar killed at least 11 and injured 14, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ambassador. Earlier, in Helmand province a Taliban suicide bomber targeted a guesthouse used by an intelligence official, killing at least seven people. Reports speak of a suicide bomber striking first outside the entrance to parliament, followed by a car bomb. President Ashraf Ghani vowed that all those behind the ‘criminal attacks’ would be caught. ‘The Taliban shamelessly claim credit for the attack on civilians and they're proud of it’, he said in a statement. Afghan sources said a district head of the National Directorate of Security - Afghanistan's main intelligence agency - was among the dead. The UAE foreign ministry called it a ‘heinous terrorist attack’.