Europe boils in record-setting heat wave
Residents across Europe suffered from a second day of record-setting heat on Thursday, as the second heat wave of the summer continues to bake the region.
Africa
US blocks UN draft condemning demolition of Palestinian homes
The United States on Wednesday reportedly blocked an attempt to get the UN Security Council to issue a formal condemnation of Israel’s demolition of Palestinian homes on the edge of Jerusalem earlier this week.
‘Pray that Christians Would Not Be Tempted,’ Believers Ask As Burkina Faso Becomes Most Recent Victim of Muslim Extremism in Africa
Another African country is falling prey to jihadism, as Muslim extremist ideologies sweep across Burkina Faso, targeting Christians.
‘One of the Most Dangerous Places for Christians’: Open Doors CEO David Curry Interviewed About Plight of Nigeria’s Christians
David Curry, CEO of persecution watchdog group Open Doors USA, was recently interviewed by Pure Flix to talk about the plight of Nigeria’s more than 90 million Christians.
‘We’re Talking About A Common Human Right’: Government Restrictions on Religion Clamp Down Over Ten-Year Period
The Pew Research Center released its 10th annual report on freedom of religion around the world, spanning over a decade of changes between 2007 and 2017.
U.S. Eyes Military Coalition To Safeguard Key Shipping Lanes Amid Iran Tensions
The United States is moving forward with plans to form a military coalition to safeguard strategic shipping lanes off Iran and Yemen amid raised tensions with Iranian leaders.
Almost 100 Malian Villagers Killed by Islamists as Genocide Against Christians in West Africa Continues
95 people, all of them Christian, in a traditionally Dogon village in Mali were slaughtered by a band of Muslim Fulani Herdsmen June 9th.
Wisconsin School Board Member Censured for Mentioning Jesus
A Wisconsin school board member is under fire from the Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, which has filed a complaint for his mention of Jesus at Appleton North High School’s graduation ceremony on June 6th.
‘Sick and tired of the deaf ears’: Mayor of border town overrun by illegal immigrants blasts federal government
The Democratic mayor of a Texas border town had some strong words for staffers from Republican Sen. John Cornyn’s office about asylum-seekers and immigration.
Islamic Radical Ideology Sweeps Across Burkina Faso, Targeting Christians
The entire Christian population of a town in Burkina Faso was forced to flee following two attacks by radicals as the shadow of Islamism creeps across the Western African nation.
Arrests of Non-Denominational Christians Continue in ‘North Korea of Africa’
Thirty Pentecostal Christians were arrested in the Eritrea Capital of Asmara recently, continuing a trend of government crackdowns on non-organized religion in the East African country that saw 141 more Christians arrested on May 10th.
Protests Over Death of Nigerian Christian Man Lead to More Reprisals by Muslim Fulani Herdsmen
Another spate of violence against Christians by Muslim Fulani Herdsmen occurred in Nigeria’s Plateau State last week, following the discovery of a Christian man’s body that led to protests by Christians against repeated Muslim aggression.
UN: 2 million Somalis could die of famine this year
A United Nations emergency relief coordinator said Tuesday that more than two million men, women and children could die of starvation in Somalia by summer’s end if international aid is not sent quickly to the drought-stricken African country.
Black Christian leaders protest new Planned Parenthood in Charlotte, lament ‘silent genocide’
African-American first ladies and church leaders in Charlotte protested the opening of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Charlotte Monday, shouting that the nation’s largest abortion provider is not welcome in the city.
Terrorists in Burkina Faso Execute Six at Pentecostal Church
Christians in Burkina Faso are mourning a deadly attack on a Protestant church as ‘a new turning point in terrorism’ in the West African nation.
USCIRF Annual Report Highlights China’s ‘Tragedy’ of Religious Freedom
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its annual report Monday, detailing religious rights abuses around the world and recommending state actors for the U.S. State Department to earmark as “Countries of Particular Concern” (CPCs).
Heavy rains cause massive flooding in cyclone-hit Mozambique
Heavy rainfall caused flooding in northern Mozambique on Sunday, just three days after Cyclone Kenneth killed at least eight people and damaged thousands of houses in the southeast African country.
Cyclone Kenneth: Mozambique could face ‘catastrophic flooding’ as new storm makes landfall
Six weeks after a tropical storm left hundreds dead in Mozambique, another potentially destructive cyclone has made landfall.
18 Dead in Cameroon as Boko Haram Travels Across the Border from Nigeria
Two separate attacks in Cameroon’s Far North region, both by Boko Haram, have claimed the lives of 18 people.
Gold worth billions smuggled out of Africa
Billions of dollars’ worth of gold is being smuggled out of Africa every year through the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East – a gateway to markets in Europe, the United States and beyond – a Reuters analysis has found.