A ministry of HCJB World Radio Today’s News Headlines:

SAUDIS CONTINUE TO HOLD ERITEAN CHRISTIAN IN DEPORTATION CENTER CHRISTIAN TEACHER PRESSURED TO RESIGN IN TURKMENISTAN WATER RATIONING IN INDIA OPENS OPPORTUNITIES FOR GOSPEL WEEK OF PRAYER TO FOCUS ON NORTH KOREA’S EMBATTLED CHRISTIANS ARMED POLICE BREAK UP HINDU RITUAL IN BELARUS CAPITAL 36 STUDENTS ENROLL IN KAZAKHSTAN BIBLE COLLEGE

Today’s News Stories:

SAUDIS CONTINUE TO HOLD ERITEAN CHRISTIAN IN DEPORTATION CENTER Germaye Ambaye, an Eritrean Christian, remains imprisoned in a crowded deportation center in Saudi Arabia for “Christian activities.” Ambaye, and Endeshawe Yizengaw, a Christian parishioner deported over two weeks ago, were active in the Ethiopian-Eritrean Christian congregation in Jeddah. After the men had their residence permits secretly revoked, Saudi police arrested them. On the day of his arrest, Yizengaw said the security police literally tore his house apart. “Finally they brutally beat me on the face,” he said. They attempted to force him to name every Arab Muslim to whom he had ever “preached Christ.” Yizengaw said they accused him of evangelizing Saudi Muslims and of receiving American funding. Yizengaw said he does talk about Christ on a regular basis with Muslims, “but I did not get a penny from anybody. God was on my side.” In an effort to conceal their real reason for arresting and deporting him, the Saudi authorities claimed that Yizengaw had been involved in making alcohol and running a prostitution ring. Despite the fact that their jailers and most of their cellmates were Muslims, Yizengaw said,”Girmaye and I just told every one of them that Jesus is Lord.” In response, “One police officer was saying to cut our heads off.” (Compass Direct)

CHRISTIAN TEACHER PRESSURED TO RESIGN IN TURKMENISTAN A Christian kindergarten teacher is being pressured to resign for allegedly preaching to children. Guzelya Syraeva was recently asked to submit her “voluntary” resignation as a teacher in Abadan, Turkmenistan. Syraeva is a member of a nondenominational Protestant church in Abadan, whose May 31 meeting was reportedly raided by officials. Authorities also threatened to fire the kindergarten’s director, Tazegyul Nurieva, if she does not dismiss Syraeva. “I do not preach to the children because I know it is against the law,” Syraeva said. “They are trying to sack me simply because of my religious beliefs.” Three years ago, a similar attempt to force her to resign failed. Officials denied that Syraeva is under pressure. Meanwhile on June 7, five members of Syraeva’s small fellowship were reportedly fined the equivalent of $47 each for meeting as an unregistered fellowship. A week earlier, police raided their gathering, confiscating Christian books and forcing adults to go to a police station for interrogation. A former Soviet republic of more than 4 million mostly Islamic people, Turkmenistan is believed to have one of the harshest religious policies in the ex-Soviet Union. (Charisma News Service)

* HCJB World Radio works in partnership with Back to the Bible to air Christian Turkmen programs. broadcasts began airing from an undisclosed site outside of Turkmenistan in 2001.

WATER RATIONING IN INDIA OPENS OPPORTUNITIES FOR GOSPEL Urban India lives under water rationing while the plight of rural areas worsens daily with fast sinking ground water levels. Ground water levels have gone down in 30 percent of the districts, forcing villagers to go elsewhere for water. Also at issue is the availability of safe, clean drinking water. Living Water International’s Jerry Wiles explains their work with churches opens the door for community ministry. “Christians have received persecution and have been alienated from the water supply. So, when people are freely given the water in the name of Jesus, they begin to ask why you’re doing it. It really opens up people to the gospel. Water is a catalyst for transformation, because when you provide clean, safe drinking water in the village, it affects the economy, it effects the education, and really brings about a transformation to the community,” he added. (Mission Network News)

WEEK OF PRAYER TO FOCUS ON NORTH KOREA’S EMBATTLED CHRISTIANS A week of prayer for North Korea is scheduled June 23-29 as an interagency initiative to pray for the desperate situation in the country. The week of prayer, initiated by Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), is being organized in association with Release International, Asialink, South Korean churches in the U.K., Open Doors U.K. and Jubilee Campaign. Meetings will be held in cities across the U.K. and in other countries. The prayer focus is in response to the horrific persecution of Christians in North Korea and the idolatry enforced by the state. “We believe North Korea is probably the worst country in which to survive as a Christian,” said CSW Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas. “In 24 years of ministry, the plight facing Christians in North Korea is probably the worst situation I have ever encountered. We call on Christians everywhere to join us in praying for the people of North Korea.” (Christian Solidarity Worldwide)

ARMED POLICE BREAK UP HINDU RITUAL IN BELARUS CAPITAL Armed police broke up a Hindu ritual and meditation evening in a private apartment in the capital city of Minsk Sunday, June 1, said the group’s leader, Natalya Solovyova. The raid came exactly a week after a similar meditation meeting was broken up elsewhere in the city. The Hindu community has not been fined for meeting together, but Solovyova says members were warned that “if it occurs again, we will go on their police records, and legal consequences will begin the time after that.” These raids have forced the Hindu community to move from place to place “like nomads,” she added. No national or local religious affairs officials could explain why the religious meetings were forcibly broken up. (Forum 18 News Service)

36 STUDENTS ENROLL IN KAZAKHSTAN BIBLE COLLEGE A new group of thirty-six students enrolled to attend the Agape Evangelical Center’s Bible College in Almaty, Kazakhstan in the next term. The Bridge International began sponsoring the center in 1993 in an effort to help the new church grow. It now represents a key tool in the Muslim enclaves of Central Asia, teaching believers about evangelism, church planting, and pastoral work. (Mission Network News)

FREE WORLD WALL MAP: Full-color, 22-inch by 34-inch world wall map. To order, e-mail your name and mailing address to or visit http://www.hcjb.org.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * James A. Ferrier HCJB World Radio U.S. Ministries Communications Director E-mail: Phone: 1-719-590-9800 Fax: 1-719-590-9801 Web: http://www.hcjb.org http://www.beyondthecall.org * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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