Palestinian Territories
The Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip last year left over 1,300 dead and thousands homeless. Many believers had already left, pressured by the growing influence of radical Islam, and particularly the murder of the Christian bookshop manager in 2007. Those who remain stay because they cannot afford to leave or feel called to share the Gospel. In Gaza and the West Bank, Christians share in the desperate economic situation.
Examples of Persecution:
- The Palestinian Bible Society's bookshop in Gaza remains closed since 2008; a court case is running against it, initiated by a neighbour.
- Robberies of some Christian houses were reported
Open Doors is: providing trauma counselling, joining local partners to help the Christian community in Gaza with food, medicine and other relief materials.
Please Pray:
- That Arab Christians would know God's protection and the Church would be a living embodiment of Gospel peace and reconciliation
- For strength and courage for believers from a Muslim background
- For the new Israeli government, asking God that leaders on both sides of the conflict would do all that would make for a just and lasting peace.