world news
CNA: Arab faction launches operation in Iraq to become the voice of persecuted Christians in the Middle East
On the solemnity of the Annunciation, March 25, local dignitaries, priests, religious, and two archbishops were on hand to mark the inauguration of ACI MENA, an Arabic-language Catholic news agency, at the Catholic University in Erbil, Iraq.
ACI MENA (short for the Association for Catholic Information in the Middle East and Northern Africa) partnered with the university to launch this initiative, aimed at telling the stories of Christians in the region, with a focus on the Churches of the East and persecuted Christians.
The agency is part of the EWTN Global Catholic Network, which also includes Catholic News Agency (CNA.)
“This initiative came to strengthen the existence of Christians in Iraq after years of persecution; it’s the time for the world to hear our voice,” Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil, Iraq, said during the gathering.
The Chaldean archbishop, known for his courageous testimony on behalf of the beleaguered Christian community during the 2014-2018 war with ISIS, focused his remarks in Arabic on the role of ACI MENA as a bridge between the most ancient but still living Christians on the planet and those around the world. He also described the new agency as a beacon of hope for persecuted Christians who will no longer be forgotten or anonymous in their suffering and witness to the Gospel.
“It is the time to reinforce Christians’ existence in Iraq and the Middle East,” Warda said. Warda founded the Catholic university in Erbil, along with a hospital and two secondary schools, after the war.
Joining Warda at the event was his close collaborator, Archbishop Nathanael Nizar Wadih Semaan of the Syrian Catholic Church of the Antiochian Tradition.
The gathering also featured a video message from Michael Warsaw, chief executive officer and chairman of the board of EWTN. He noted that ACI MENA’s inauguration date — March 25, the Solemnity of the Annunciation — is the former feast day of EWTN’s late foundress, Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation. It is also the day the Eternal Word took on flesh, an inspiring beginning for the news agency, he noted.
“We look forward to beginning this new work, to watching it grow in the years ahead and to seeing the tremendous fruit which we know it will produce,” Warsaw said.
“We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the heroism and faithfulness of our brothers and sisters in this region,” he added. “ACI MENA intends to be your voice.”
Several dignitaries of the Kurdistan region assisted with a ribbon cutting ceremony. They included the mayor of the Christian city of Ankawa, Ramy Noori Syawish; the president of the Catholic University in Erbil, Dr. Riadh Francis, and Ano Abdoka, the minister of transportation and communications and the representative of Christians to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG.)
In an interview with CNA, Abdoka spoke about the richness of the Church of the East and its incredible longstanding witness to the belief in Jesus Christ.
“This testimony goes from 20 centuries ago until now,” he said. “In the year 92 after Christ died, Erbil had a bishop.”
ACI MENA’s mission will be to deliver that richness and witness of that tradition to the Arabic-speaking world and beyond, said Bashar Jameel Hanna, the agency’s editor-in-chief.
“ACI MENA’s mission is to provide a voice for those who lost their voice in our region. We continue his message by our own life blood and martyrs,” he said.
“A sound extends to the root of first Christian’s to announce again that he suffered, crucified, and died, ” he added, “but he is risen and we are his witnesses.”
http://theendtimeradio.com
world news
ബഞ്ചമിന് നെതന്യാഹു രാജ്യത്ത് പ്രവേശിച്ചാല് അറസ്റ്റ് ചെയ്ത് കോടതിക്ക് കൈമാറുമെന്ന് വിവിധ രാജ്യങ്ങള്
ആംസ്റ്റര്ഡാം: ഇസ്രായേല് പ്രധാനമന്ത്രി ബഞ്ചമിന് നെതന്യാഹുവിനും മുന് പ്രതിരോധ മന്ത്രി യോവ് ഗാലന്റിനും ഹമാസ് നേതാവ് മുഹമ്മദ് ദൈഫിനും എതിരെ അന്താരാഷ്ട്ര ക്രിമിനല് കോടതി അറസ്റ്റ് വാറന്റ് പുറപ്പെടുവിച്ചതോടെ ഇസ്രായേല് പ്രതിസന്ധിയിലായി. തങ്ങളുടെ നാട്ടില് പ്രവേശിച്ചാല് ഇവരെ അറസ്റ്റ് ചെയ്ത് കോടതിക്ക് കൈമാറുമെന്ന് വിവിധ രാജ്യങ്ങള് പ്രഖ്യാപിച്ചു. ഐസിസി സ്ഥാപിച്ച റോം ചട്ടത്തില് 6 ഭൂഖണ്ഡങ്ങളിലായി 124 രാജ്യങ്ങളാണുള്ളത്. ഈ രാജ്യങ്ങള് അറസ്റ്റ് വാറന്റ് നടപ്പാക്കാന് ബാധ്യസ്ഥരാണെന്ന് അന്താരാഷ്ട്ര മനുഷ്യാവകാശ അഭിഭാഷകന് ജോനാഥന് കട്ടബ് പറഞ്ഞു.
മനുഷ്യത്വത്തിനെതിരായ കുറ്റകൃത്യങ്ങളും ഗസ്സയിലെ യുദ്ധകുറ്റങ്ങളും ആരോപിച്ചാണ് നെതന്യാഹുവിനും ഗാലന്റിനുമെതിരായ ഐസിസിയുടെ നടപടി. ഇസ്രായേലും അമേരിക്കയും കോടതിയുടെ ഭാഗമല്ല. എന്നാല് ഇസ്രായേലിന്റെ പല സഖ്യകക്ഷികളും, പ്രത്യേകിച്ച് യൂറോപ്യന് യൂണിയനടക്കം അറസ്റ്റ് വാറന്റ് നടപ്പാക്കാന് ബാധ്യസ്ഥരാണെന്ന് അറിയിച്ചിട്ടുണ്ട്.അതിനാല് തന്നെ നേരത്തേത് പോലെ സ്വതന്ത്രമായി യാത്ര ചെയ്യാന് ഇനി നെതന്യാഹുവിന് സാധ്യമാകില്ലെന്നാണ് വിദഗ്ധര് ചൂണ്ടിക്കാണിക്കുന്നു.
സ്വന്തമായി പോലീസില്ലാത്തതിനാല് ഐസിസിക്ക് നേരിട്ട് ഇവരെ അറസ്റ്റ് ചെയ്യാനാകില്ല. എന്നതാണ് മറ്റൊരു കാര്യം. 2023 ല് യുക്രെയ്ന് അധിനിവേശത്തിന്റെ പേരില് റഷ്യന് പ്രസിഡന്റ് വ്ളാദിമിര് പുടിന് നേരെയും കോടതി അറസ്റ്റ് വാറന്റ് പുറപ്പെടുവിച്ചിട്ടുണ്ട്. എന്നാല് പുടിനെ ഇതുവരെ അറസ്റ്റ് ചെയ്യാന് സാധിച്ചിട്ടില്ല.
world news
‘ Israeli, US Leaders Blast ICC Arrest Warrants Against Netanyahu, Gallant
Israel – Two of Israel’s most famous and respected leaders now face arrest if they go to almost any nation in the world. That’s after the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing alleged “war crimes.”
The prime minister swiftly defended Israel’s military actions in Gaza, declaring, “No war is more just than the war that Israel has been waging in Gaza after Hamas attacked us, unprovoked.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog wrote that the ICC’s decision “has turned universal justice into a universal laughingstock.”
The ICC claims that Netanyahu and Gallant are guilty of “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare, and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.”
“We are accused of deliberately harming civilians, while we are doing everything to prevent harm to civilians – and this is against an enemy who is hiding behind civilians and using them as human shields. We are accused of starving a population while we are bringing in hundreds of thousands of tons of food to feed the population, and this is while Hamas is looting this food and it is starving the residents of Gaza,” Netanyahu proclaimed.
The ICC’s charges came amid evidence of another international organization’s bias against Israel. A new report from the group U.N. Watch stated that a former United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) commissioner-general held a secret meeting in 2017 with terrorist groups, including Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. At the meeting, the UNRWA chief reportedly told them “We are one” and “No one can separate us.”
As for the ICC arrest warrants, Netanyahu and Gallant could be arrested if they go to certain countries that have accepted the court’s authority. Nations such as the Netherlands and Ireland agreed immediately to make the arrests if given the chance.
Josep Borrell, the European Union foreign policy chief, said, “All members of the European Union are bound to implement this court decision.”
Nomi Bar-Yaacov, an international attorney with Chatham House noted, “And to those countries, Netanyahu won’t be able to travel. And that’s a very, very big thing.”
She added, “And they include the European countries and it includes the UK, it includes France, Germany. So that’s very, very serious.”
That doesn’t bother some anti-Netanyahu Israelis, such as Tel Aviv resident Annette Shimoni, who stated, “I don’t care if they arrest Bibi Netanyahu. As far as I’m concerned, he can sit in jail for the rest of his life.”
But other Israelis say far-away judges can’t understand what it’s like to be Jews in a region where they are always surrounded by terrorists plotting to exterminate them.
“This ICC’s purely antisemitic and it doesn’t see what’s going on around Israel,” said Tel Aviv resident Ron Ackerman. “Maybe they should come and live here for two or three months, and they will understand everything.”
Netanyahu is hoping for a tough backlash against the court.
“This decision will have severe consequences for the ICC and those who cooperate with its decision, Netanyahu warned.
President-elect Donald Trump’s presumptive National Security Advisor, Congressman Mike Waltz, promised, “You can expect a strong response to the anti-Semitic bias of the ICC and the U.N., come January.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) says the United States should go after the ICC because that court is targeting the wrong people. He suggested they should pursue the Islamic terrorists who are forcing the Israelis to fight them.
Graham said on the Senate floor, “This is not a Bibi problem. This is a problem where there are Islamic terrorists – Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran – that want to kill all the Jews; not just Bibi. Now, why do they want to do that? They’re religious Nazis.”
Graham and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul want Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to bring up a bill for a vote that the House has already passed.
The measure is called The Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act (Senate Bill 224). It would impose sanctions on ICC employees or associates who aid the effort to prosecute Israeli leaders.
Graham posted on X, “The court is a dangerous joke. It’s now time for the Senate to act and sanction this irresponsible body.”
Sources:CBN News http://theendtimeradio.com
world news
Malaysian Politician Calls for Reintroduction of Bible Studies in Schools
Malaysia — John Ilus, the Bukit Semuja member of Parliament for the Legislative Assembly of the Malaysian State of Sarawak, Borneo, recently advocated for the Bible to be reintroduced into local primary schools.
Ilus stressed on Nov. 14 that Christian missionaries had played a critical role in the Sarawak society and its educational system and that the Bible studies these Christians implemented strengthened the moral and spiritual development of generations of Sarawakians.
British Anglican missionaries first arrived at Sarawak in 1848. Ilus said that young Sarawakians should be able to have Bible studies and learn about the Christian faith just as they can learn about other religions through the current curriculum.
Ilus made this formal request to the Ministry of Education during the recent Legislative Assembly meeting. Datuk Seri Roland Sagah Wee Inn, the state Minister of Education, Innovation, and Talent Development, acknowledged Ilus’ formal request and said his ministry would consider it.
Census figures indicate that about two-thirds of Malaysia’s more than 3 million Christians live in Borneo (Sarawak and Sabah states). More than 50% of the population of Sarawak itself, the largest state in Malaysia, are Christians, again showing the strong and rich Christian heritage and presence in east Malaysia.
Sources:persecution
-
Travel6 months ago
യാക്കൂസ കരിഷ്മ:ഓല സ്കൂട്ടറിനേക്കാൾ വിലക്കുറവിൽ കുഞ്ഞൻ കാർ; സിറ്റി യാത്രകൾക്ക് ഇനി ഇവൻ മതിയാവും
-
Tech5 months ago
ചിത്രങ്ങൾ എഡിറ്റ് ചെയ്യാം; വാട്സ്ആപ്പിലെ ‘നീല വളയം’ സ്മാർട്ടാകുന്നു, കാര്യമായ മാറ്റങ്ങൾ
-
National9 months ago
നെയ്തേലിപ്പടി ക്രൂസേഡിന് അനുഗ്രഹീത സമാപ്തി
-
National9 months ago
300,000-Member Indian Church to Plant 40 More Megachurches
-
Movie8 months ago
Actor Ryan Phillippe ‘Craving’ Relationship With God After Movie About Christian Missionary
-
Movie12 months ago
Brazilian gospel singer Pedro Henrique dies of heart attack after collapsing on stage
-
Articles6 months ago
8 ways the Kingdom connects us back to the Garden of Eden
-
Hot News8 months ago
3 key evidences of Jesus’ return from the grave