VOM Canada will keep caring for the persecuted, no matter what

(Photos courtesy Wikipedia/Al Jazeera/Flickr CC)

Nigeria (MNN) ― A long-awaited decision has been made. The U.S. State Department recently designated Nigeria's radical Islamic militant group Boko Haram and splinter group Ansaru as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO).

"I guess it's a little bit disappointing in the fact that it's taken so long.... The Boko Haram have been going since 2009," says Voice of the Martyrs Canada spokesman Greg Musselman.

The designation, however, probably won't affect their work among Christian families attacked by the terrorist group, he adds.

"There's a lot of pressure put on our organization and other organizations, especially in the area of medical and helping the persecuted Christians there. But in terms of our work, no, it won't affect it," states Musselman, "unless the Boko Haram stops--and we don't see that happening anytime soon, unfortunately."

Who are the Boko Haram?

"They want to set up an Islamic state...with strict Sharia law. They've got this in their mind that Christians are of the West," Musselman explains.

"Boko Haram means 'against Western education' or 'Western education is sinful.' They want nothing to do with the West, and they see Christianity--particularly evangelical Christian--as being American or Western."

Boko Haram has killed at least 2,000 people over the past four years, many of them Christians.

"I've seen figures of 3,600 people who've been killed, mainly up in the northern part of Nigeria," says Musselman. "It's not just Christians they're attacking; they're a very violent group."

In 2012, the International Criminal Court issued a report concluding Boko Haram is guilty of committing "Crimes Against Humanity." The ICC's prosecutor clearly found that Boko Haram has "attacked religious clerics, Christians, political leaders, Muslims opposing the group, members of the police and security forces, 'westerners,' journalists, as well as UN personnel."

Voice of the Martyrs USA spokesman Todd Nettleton also noted a frustrating avoidance among U.S. leadership of the Boko Haram's religious motivations.

"[Boko Haram's] motivation for those crimes is obviously radical Islam and pushing a Sharia agenda, and yet our government says that Boko Haram is the result of 'economic imbalance' in Nigeria and 'lack of educational opportunities,'" says Nettleton.

In light of the past four years' death toll, it's easy to get overwhelmed by Boko Haram's widespread and ongoing reign of terror. "People just kind of put their hands up in the air and say, 'There's nothing we can do'" notes Musselman.

"Of course, that's not true. There is much we can do."

It all starts with prayer. "Our prayer really needs to be for the Church in Nigeria, that they will be strong," says Musselman.

Sunni/Shi'ite battle intensifies, Christians flee to safer ground

Canon Andrew Wright refuses to leave Iraq,
 despite escalating violence
. (Story image courtesy Voice of the Martyrs Canada.
 Cover image courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Iraq (MNN) ― Rising sectarian violence is putting Iraq on the path of civil war.

Battle lines have deepened since April, as Sunni Islamist militants kill increasing numbers of civilians to invoke "revenge" on the Shi'ite government. Since 2013 began, nearly 5,000 people have lost their lives in sectarian violence.

"The mujahideen [holy warriors] will not stand with their hands tied while the despicable project of Iran shows its ugly face in Iraq and the Levant," the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) stated on a militant Internet forum.

The al Qaeda branches of Iraq and Syria merged in August to form this new group, which quickly rose up as the main opposition fighting President Basheer al-Assad's reign in Syria. An analyst at the Center for International and Strategic Studies, Jon Alterman, recently told TIME Magazine that Syria's civil war is playing a "huge part" in Iraq's tension.

"You're having jihadis from all over the world traveling to Syria, being considered surplus and being sent to carry out suicide attacks in Iraq," said Alterman.

Statements made by U.S. officials seem to confirm this reality.

"Over the last two years, we've had an average of about 5 to 10 suicide bombers a month in 2011 and 2012," a senior U.S. official said at an August press briefing. "We've seen over the last 90 days the suicide bomber numbers approach around 30 a month, and we still suspect most of those are coming in from Syria.... What that shows is a fairly sophisticated al-Qaeda network."

Voice of the Martyrs Canada works alongside St. George's Church in Baghdad, supporting a variety of their projects: feeding programs, medical and dental clinics, etc. Spokesman Greg Musselman says their ministry partner, Canon Andrew Wright, told him the last few weeks have been especially terrible.

"'There are no longer 'rumors of war:' war is here,'" Musselman says Wright told him.

While the overall violence gripping Iraq is primarily between Shi'ite and Sunni followers of Islam, Musselman says Christians fall victim, too.

"It's definitely having a devastating effect on the Church because of everything that's happening with the rise up of militant Islam," he states. "The Church has been so decimated and it's become so small.

"Before the First World War, about 20% of the population in the Middle East was Christian. Now, it's anywhere between 2 and 4%--and shrinking."

In a recent interview, Musselman says Wright revealed a "shocking" statistic.

"More than 1,200 people in his church have been killed since 2003," says Musselman.

Click here to read a recent letter to Voice of the Martyrs Canada from Reverend Wright.

Born in England, Wright leads the only Anglican Church in Baghdad. Musselman says Wright has dedicated his life to the people of Iraq, and often tells them in times of turmoil, "I'm not going to leave you. Don't leave me!"

"But now he's hearing from many of them, including those very close to him: 'You know what, it's just too dangerous. We need to get out of here,'" explains Musselman.

"I confess that such statements drove me to tears," Wright penned in a letter to Musselman.

"Then I remembered that He who has called me to this place will never fail me. As He remained with Daniel, so He will remain with me."

The rise of radical Islam in Iraq and the perseverance of Christ-followers like Wright reveal a conundrum.

"If all the Christians leave Iraq…where will the Light be?" asks Musselman.

"A million Christians have left the country, and that's decimating what already was a fairly small Church.... But even in the midst of all that, there are still those that are willing to stay and be the Light, and even start house churches…because they really believe that God wants them there."

Want to know the best way to help them? It's easy. Pray.

"There are a number of things I think that we can pray for, but the number one thing is that fear would not overtake our brothers and sisters in Christ," says Musselman.

To provide tangible support, click here to send resources and other forms of encouragement to persecuted believers in Iraq through Voice of the Martyrs Canada.

"Just remember, these are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We're not physically with them, but spiritually we are," says Musselman. "We're in this together. Pray! And as the Lord maybe tells some of us to go or to do something practical, we need to do that."

'It's uncomfortable to think that people are dying for their faith'

Violence is on the rise in Iraq.
(Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Iraq (MNN) ― It's been roughly twelve years since the U.S. entered a "War Against Terror" in Iraq and Afghanistan.

On this day in 2001, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four airplanes and crashed them into major U.S. landmarks: two into New York's World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. When crew members and passengers attempted to gain control of the fourth plane, it crashed into a Pennsylvania field.

Nearly 3,000 people died in what would take a place in history as the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil.

Declaring a war on terrorism, the U.S. launched an offensive strike in Afghanistan called Operation Enduring Freedom. Two years later, Operation Iraqi Freedom put nearly 150,000 U.S. boots on the ground in the initial strike.

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, over 1 million American soldiers served in Iraq; many of them on multiple deployments. U.S. troops pulled out of Iraq entirely in 2011, leaving the country in shaky hands.

This spring, Greg Musselman of Voice of the Martyrs Canada was in Baghdad.

"The thing that really struck me was just the state of fear," says Musselman. "Everybody is on-edge, all the time."

Shortly after Musselman and his team left, a new wave of violence began sweeping through Iraq.

Sectarian conflict between Sunni militants and Iraq's Shi'ite government is threatening to topple the unstable Middle Eastern nation. This summer saw Iraq's deadliest month since sectarian violence peaked in 2006 and 2007. According to UN figures, 1,057 Iraqis were killed and another 2,326 wounded during July.

Bombings are now an almost-daily occurrence. Yesterday, attacks in central and northern Iraq killed more than 20 people. Over 4,000 people have died so far this year, according to Agence France-Presse.

If the West uses force in Syria, it could push this alarming trend over the edge. Iraqi Christians are torn.

"They're just not sure what's going to happen," says Musselman. "There are some that would say, 'We'll stay no matter what; we're here to advance God's Kingdom.' [There are] others that would like to leave yesterday."

Among the latest developments in Syria comes a Russian proposal to surrender all chemical weapons to the United Nations. The U.S. and its allies have agreed to look over the plan, suspending a threatened military strike.

Musselman says church leaders inside Syria are "very concerned" about the unfolding state of affairs.

"It's such a volatile situation," he states. "We really need to be interceding and pressing in with our Lord and asking Him to help our leaders to do the right thing."

In Iraq, VOM Canada helps Christians who face arrest, torture, and even death for their faith in Jesus.

"The worst kind of persecution in Muslim countries is for those who have converted from Islam to Christianity," Musselman explains. "They're not only seen as infidels but even worse than that, because they have left Islam.

"We want to aid and support them any way we can."

Musselman refers to a young man he met this spring as an example.

"He had come to Christ, and his brothers tried to kill him because he had become a Christian," Musselman recalls.

As a result, the young man fled to southern Iraq and is now living in an area with a very strong Shi'ite presence. For security reasons, Musselman doesn't state the man's name or exact ways VOM Canada is helping him.

"Our desire is to…help and support Christians, sort of one-on-one, as best we can," says Musselman.

They're also trying to strengthen the underground Church. Only 334,000 Christians remain in Iraq--less than half of their 1991 population.

"They have to be very careful because if they're found out, they could be in great difficulty, could be killed, those kinds of things--arrested, tortured," says Musselman.

VOM Canada defines Iraq as a "restricted nation," a country whose government policies prevent believers from obtaining Bibles or other Christian literature. Also included in the definition are "government-sanctioned circumstances" that lead to Christians being "harassed, imprisoned, or killed."

"Our heart's desire is to empower the Christians, to say that we care about you, we know what's going on, [and] we're praying for you," says Musselman.

"How can we come along and support the Gospel ministry that you're doing at this point in time?"

Their answers take different shapes, from women's ministry to letters of encouragement.

What can you do?

"It's uncomfortable to think that people are dying for their faith," states Musselman. But as Christians, he adds, we are called to respond.

"We need to care, and we need to be praying for them and helping them in any way we can," Musselman says. "We may have a relative who doesn't know the Lord, but you're actually closer-related spiritually to someone that's in Iraq."