MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

Revelation 13:15, “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.”

SPY Ghana – “Information reaching 247ureports.com indicates that the Sunday attack at Dakata and Hotoro quarters in Kano metropolis has resulted in two more deaths. The death toll rose from three [3] to five [5].

The attack had occurred through the actions of Jihadists who drove in [a three-wheeled motor vehicle] armed with machine guns. They opened fire on residents at the two areas – killing three on the spot – while many more sustained injuries.

According to the Chairman of the Kano Chapter of Christian Association of Nigeria [CAN], Bishop Ransom Bello, the two latest victims were blood brothers of same parents. ‘The parents of the slain victims have officially communicated report of the attack to CAN secretariat in Kano’.

The victims were returning home from Sunday service at the ECWA church, Dakata when the Jihadist gun men struck. According to the CAN State Chairman, the attacks came two weeks after 13 Christians were gun down in Sheka, Sharada Phase 3 in Kumbotso Local Government Area.

The police public relations officer refused to comment.” Source – SPY Ghana.

• Flashback: Islam In Africa: ‘An Invisible Genocide Where Sadistic Killers Slaughter And Execute Thousands Of Christians’
• Flashback: Nigeria: Suspected Islamists In Kano Gun Down At Least 16 Christians During Worship Service
• Flashback: Lawlessness: Nigerian Christian Mispronouncing Word In Kano Results In Businesses Destroyed, Christians Killed By Muslim Mob
• Flashback: Nigeria: At Least 13 Christians Slaughtered In Kano By Islamists For Not Saying Muslim Prayers
• Flashback: Nigeria: ‘Proud Soldiers of Allah’ Vows to Destroy Christianity, ‘We Will Devour You … Our Joy Is To Die In Jihad’
• Flashback: Nigeria: Teenage Christian Kids In Kano Shot Dead By Muslims Praising Allah

By AYA BATRAWY, Huffington Post – “An Egyptian Foreign Ministry official says a man suspected of trying to spread Christianity in Libya has died in prison there.

The diplomat says Ezzat Atallah, who suffered from diabetes and heart ailments, likely died of natural causes. He spoke anonymously Sunday in line with regulations.

Atallah was among five Evangelical Christian Egyptians detained in Libya for allegedly proselytizing in the predominantly Muslim nation.

Last week, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry intervened to win release from Libya of 55 Egyptians who were also suspected of proselytizing. Thirty-five of them were deported for illegally entering the country, while 20 were cleared to stay in Libya.

Also, four foreigners under investigation for alleged espionage and proselytizing remain in a Libyan prison. They are a Swedish-American, a South Korean, a South African and an Egyptian.” Source – Huffington Post.

Mass Arrests Of Christians, Reports Of Torture, Inconsistencies In Official Statements – ‘What Is Going On In Libya?’ – “What is going on in Libya? What is going on is Islam. Islam means ‘submission‘ and what we are witnessing is nothing more than complete submission to the will of ‘Allah‘ and his beast religion, something that we will continue to witness in increasing measure until our Deliverer comes to rescue all those who belong to Him …” Read more.

For peaceful purposes …

Revelation 13:18 – Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the multitude of the beast: for it is the multitude of a man; and his multitude is χξς …

Matthew 7:5, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”

The Times of Israel – “Hundreds of people in eastern Pakistan rampaged through a Christian neighborhood Saturday, torching dozens of homes after hearing reports that a Christian man had committed blasphemy against Islam’s prophet.

Blasphemy is a serious crime in Pakistan that can carry the death penalty but sometimes outraged residents exact their own retribution for perceived insults of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. Pakistan is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim and people of other faiths, including the nation’s small Christian community, are often viewed with suspicion.

The incident started Friday when a young Muslim man accused a Christian man of committing blasphemy by making offensive comments about the prophet, according to Multan Khan, a senior police officer in Lahore.

A large crowd from a nearby mosque went to the Christian man’s home on Friday night, said Khan. Police registered a blasphemy case against the man after the crowd gathered and demanded action, the officer said.

Fearing for their safety, hundreds of Christian families fled the area overnight.

Khan said the mob returned on Saturday and began ransacking Christian homes and setting them ablaze. He said no one in the Christian community was hurt, but several policemen were injured when they were hit with stones as they tried to keep the crowd from storming the area.” Read more.

• Flashback: ‘Catastrophic’: The Miseries of Persecuted Christians of Pakistan
• Flashback: Pakistan: Christian Man Murdered For Refusing To Convert To Islam
• Flashback: Pakistan: Christian Beaten By Police For Using Glass Owned By Muslims
• Flashback: Pakistan: Islamic Persecution Forcing Christians To Flee Into The Wilderness
• Flashback: Pakistan: Christian Woman Brutally Tortured by Muslim Mob, Paraded Through Village Streets for ‘Anti-Islam Views’
• Flashback: Christians In Pakistan Told To Convert To Islam Or Leave, ‘Otherwise They Will Face Consequences’
• Flashback: Pakistan Islamists: ‘You Christians Have Offended Our Prophet, We Will Kill You All!’

Matthew 22:37-40, “Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.'”

Revelation 14:12, “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.”

By Katherine Weber, Christian Post Reporter – “Recent reports indicate that five Christian members of the Church of Iran will soon be going on trial for their religion, facing multiple charges which include threatening national security and evangelism.

The five imprisoned men, Mohammad Roghangir, Surush Saraie, Eskandar Rezaie, Shahin Lahooti and Massoud Rezaie have been detained since October 2012, and are facing charges of disturbing public order, evangelizing, action against national security and an internet activity against the system, according to religious persecution watchdog group Christian Solidarity Worldwide.

The trial for the five men will begin at the Revolutionary Court in Shiraz, located in the Fars Province, on March 10.

As Andrew Johnston, Christian Solidarity Worldwide’s advocacy director said in a recent statement, the charges of these five men have been cloaked in political terms, although it is evident that they are being persecuted for their Christian faith.

‘Once again Iranian Christians face charges couched in political terms that in reality stem from their choice of faith and desire to exercise the right to worship in community with others, as guaranteed in article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran is party,’ Johnston said in a statement emailed to The Christian Post.

The five men facing trial were arrested, along with two other Christians, in October 2012 in an authority-implemented prayer service raid in Shiraz, in the country’s Fars province.

At the time, Christian Solidarity Worldwide pointed to an increased crackdown on Christians in the country on behalf of government authorities.

‘There appears to be an increasing tendency by the Iranian authorities to characterize legitimate religious activities as crimes against the state,’ CSW Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said at the time, as previously reported by The Christian Post.” Read more.

Flashback: Fearing ‘The Growth of Christianity Like Never Before’ Iranian Authorities Escalate Crackdown on Christians in Ahwaz, Shiraz, Esfahan and Kermanshah – “The Islamic Republic of Iran has intensified its crackdown on Iranian Christians during recent weeks. This has resulted in the arrest of a number of Christians in Ahwaz, Shiraz, Esfahan and Kermanshah. (The interview is concerning this issue)… Today, the regime of Iran crackdowns on Christians, especially Christian converts, for it is observing the growth of Christianity like never before. This fact has made them concerned.” Read more.

Charisma News – “Over the past week, 125 Christians have been beaten and detained in Eritrea.

‘Police arrested these church members from homes and workplaces during broad daylight and then marched them through town to the police station while beating them,’ an investigator for Open Doors reported to Worthy News.

Among the 125 Christians, 45 men and women were arrested on Feb. 27 for worshiping outside highly regulated government-approved churches in Eritrea. According to Worthy News, all of the 125 individuals detained were members of an evangelical denomination located in the southwestern town of Barentu.

Worthy News has reported that the Eritrean government has denied any wrongdoing in regard to the arrests.

Eritrea, sometimes referred to as the ‘North Korea of Africa,’ has been ruled by President Isaias Afwerki and his Popular Front for Democracy and Justice Party since the country gained independence in 1993. Since taking power, the Afwerki regime has instituted a totalitarian government that seeks to control all aspects of life in Eritrea, including the religious practices of its citizens.

‘Being a Christian in Eritrea is like living in hell,’ a source inside Eritrea told International Christian Concern. ‘Christians are treated like enemy No. 1.’

Paranoid about losing power, the Afwerki regime targets any religious activity conducted outside highly regulated government churches. According to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), ‘Systematic, ongoing and egregious religious freedom violations continue in Eritrea. These violations include: torture, sometimes resulting in death, arbitrary detention and prolonged bans on religious activities.’

It is estimated that more than 2,000 Christians remain imprisoned in Eritrea. As ICC’s source in Eritrea can attest by personal experience, the conditions these prisoners are exposed to are among the most inhumane conditions in the world. Afwerki has stated that his restrictive policies on religion are aimed at groups that have been ‘duped by foreigners [and] are seeking to distract from the unity of the Eritrean people.’

ICC Regional Manager for Africa William Stark said, ‘Christians in Eritrea continue to be rounded up and arbitrarily imprisoned by the increasingly repressive government. The prison conditions these Christians are exposed to defy all international human rights standards. Prisoners have testified to being locked in tiny, pitch black cells for months on end, tortured, starved and constantly abused, both mentally and physically, by prison guards.'” Read more.

Flashback: Eritrean Christian in Saudi Arabia Faces Death Penalty for Sharing His Faith – “An Eritrean Christian is facing the death penalty in Saudi Arabia after being arrested for sharing his faith with Muslims. Mussie Eyob was detained by the authorities at a mosque in Saudi’s second largest city, Jeddah, on 12 February. He had gone there to meet and talk with local Muslims after speaking about Christianity at the Eritrean Embassy for three days. Eyob was arrested for preaching to Muslims, an offence that carries the death penalty in Saudi Arabia.”  Read more.

Flashback: Eritrean Christians In Cairo Abducted By Islamists, Told To Convert To Islam – “Christian Solidarity Worldwide has received alarming reports of the abductions of six Eritrean women in Cairo. The women were reportedly abducted in the Egyptian capital by men purporting to be police officers. The women, aged between 20 and 32, claim to have travelled in a white taxi that was stopped by men in police uniforms, who opened the vehicle and sprayed an unknown substance into their faces that caused them to lose consciousness. When they awoke, they were in an unfamiliar location.” Read more.

Revelation 13:15, “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.”

PM News – “The Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN has urged the authorities to probe the gruesome killing of 13 factory workers identified as Christians at Sheka, Sharada Phase 111 in Kumbotso Local Government Area of Kano, by gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram members…

‘The occupants of that compound are mostly factory workers, and they are Christians. The gun men who came in taxi asked if they were not observing the evening Muslim prayers; and when they confirmed their victims were Christians, they started killing them sparing only the female and children.

‘After the attack, I counted at least, 13 dead bodies murdered in gruesome manner. Security agencies later came and evacuated them, while the very few of them who survived the attack fled the area and vowed never to return,’ said a resident of the area.

Bishop Ransom Bello, CAN chairman in Kano has been in a very bad mood, not only because of the killings but what he described as the non-challant attitude of Kano state government over the incident.

Bello who is also the General Overseer of Calvary Life Assembly said he has handed over the matter to CAN’s national leadership, adding that with what is happening, it has become obvious that Christians are no longer safe in Kano.

‘Reports of the attack reaching us disclosed that on that fateful Saturday at about 7 p.m, Muslim faithful were conducting their prayer close to the affected compound occupied by Christian families, when two taxi cabs stopped in front of the compound and the occupants, who all concealed their arms dashed into the complex and demanded to know why the residents were not part of the 7 p.m. Muslim prayer.

‘They responded by telling the visitors they were Christians and so could not be part of the Muslim gathering. At that point, they separated the men from their wives and children and shot them dead on the spot after ordering the women and children into their homes.'” Read more.

• Flashback: Boko Haram: Our Goal is to Eliminate Followers of Christ
• Flashback: Nigerian President: Islamist Killings Means End Times Are Upon Us
• Flashback: Islamists Massacre Dozens Of University Students For Being Christian

Reuters – “Gunmen attacked an Egyptian Coptic church in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, assaulting two priests, the official LANA news agency quoted the foreign ministry as saying on Sunday.

The foreign ministry said it ‘strongly condemned Thursday’s attack on the Egyptian church … and the aggression towards Father Paul Isaac and his assistant by the irresponsible armed men,’ LANA quoted a foreign ministry statement as saying.

It did not elaborate on the attacks but said an inquiry committee involving the interior, defense and justice ministries had been formed and had ‘taken the necessary measures to secure the church and its occupants’.

It expressed ‘deep concern’ over the attack, saying it was ‘contrary to the rules’ of Islam and international human rights laws.

Libya’s small Christian community has expressed fears over Islamist extremism as the government struggles to impose its authority over armed groups which have refused to lay down their weapons since the 2011 war that ousted Muammar Gaddafi.

In December, an explosion at a building belonging to a Coptic church in Dafniya, close to the western city of Misrata, killed two Egyptian men and wounded two others.

Last month, four foreigners were arrested in Benghazi on suspicion of being Christian missionaries and printing books about Christianity.” Read more.

• Flashback: Situation Critical: Muslim Fundamentalists Driving Christians From Libya
• Flashback: Libya: Benghazi Islamists Round Up ‘More Than 100′ Christian Preachers For Spreading Christianity (Video)
• Flashback: Benghazi Friday Sermon: Destroy Christians And Jews, ‘The Time Has Come For Us …To Detonate Our Wrath Upon Them’