The woman described in Proverbs 31 has been my mentor for many years. I have learned from her wholehearted example of living out her everyday life for God. The priority in this woman's life is seen in verse 30 – her fear of God. It is her spiritual life that is commended and is the cornerstone of her excellence. Her example has deeply influenced my desire to seek the Kingdom of God above all else.
As I have studied and mediated on Proverbs 31, I think that I discovered one of the secrets of this woman's excellence: she realized that only she could be responsible for her life. Her choices, responses, and her walk with God were solely her responsibility; only she could give an account of her life to God.
Goals and desires are not the same. Larry Crabb has noted that the difference between a goal and a desire is whether I exercise. However, if I want a friend or loved one to lose weight, that can only be a desire because I cannot control his or her eating or exercising! There is nothing wrong with desires, but it is very important to discern the difference between what I can and cannot control in life. A goal is something that I can be totally responsible for; I do not have to depend on anyone else to get that goal accomplished.
In a friendship or marriage, I cannot have a goal of having a good friendship or marriage because that involves someone else. However, I can desire to have a good relationship. As such I can pray and cooperate in the relationship to make it so. A proper goal for me in a friendship is to be a good friend and in marriage to be a good wife because that is something I can control.
I think that the woman described in Proverbs 31 is a model for taking responsibility for our part in living a godly life. The chapter is full of she does, she seeks, she is, she brings, she stretches, she speaks.
It is good to examine our responses in different situations to see if we are trying to control or manipulate someone else. Richard Foster has written, "We must come to the place in our lives where we lay down the everlasting burden of needing to manage others." To become a woman of excellence, I just need to manage myself! The apostle Peter reminds us, "Remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as 'temporary residents' " (1 Peter 1:17, NLT).
My becoming an excellent woman is not dependent on anyone else: it is dependent on my decision to be God's woman who fears Him, who derives her worth and security from Christ, and who is then free to serve and love others to His glory.
Proverbs 31:30-31 tells us that "charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise" (NLT). The woman described in Proverbs 31 was praised first by her husband and family, which is evidence that she lived her priorities and that her deeds were an affirmation of her character to the world.
Earlier in this study we looked at Ruth's excellent life, and it is special to read that after her marriage to Boaz, she gave birth to her son, Obed. Naomi's friends rejoiced, and we find in Ruth 4:15 their tribute to Ruth: "He is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!" (NLT). This is very high praise for Ruth and is testimony of her life of excellence.
You've been reading from Becoming a Woman of Excellence by Cynthia Heald. Part of a comprehensive Bible study series, this eleven-week study will challenge you to be rooted in surrender, molded by discipline, made precious by a gentle and quiet spirit, and proclaimed by wisdom. See all of Cynthia's Bible Studies here.
What Do You Want Jesus to Teach You?


The scientific journal Natural History Sciences (formerly Atti della Società Italiana di Scienze Naturali e del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale in Milano) was founded in 1856 to publish original research in natural sciences.
The Editorial Board will not accept papers that do not meet the journal guidelines.
PAGEPress is currently working with the major databases and online resources, such as Scopus, Clarivate Web Of Science/InCites, Pubmed/Medline, PubMedCentral, Google Scholar, Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), IndexCopernicus, Chemical Abstracts Service, to track the Natural History Sciences articles. PAGEPress is also working closely with Scopus and Clarivate products to ensure that citation analysis of articles published in this Journal will be available as soon as possible.


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Sexual Reproduction in Humans - The First Stages
A-level » Biology » Reproduction
Sexual Reproduction in Flowering Plants Sexual Reproduction in Humans - The Final Stages
Like in plants it is the male gamete that needs to be transferred to the female gamete. The female gamete is fertilised and develops inside the mother's body so the reproductive systems of both males and females are highly adapted for this.
Male reproductive system and sperm production
Production of sperm is called spermatogenesis.
It takes place in the gonads of the male - the testes. Over 100 million can be made in one day!
Each testis is composed of numerous tiny tubes called seminiferous tubules. It is in the walls of these tubules that sperm production actually takes place.
Development begins in the outer side of the wall in a layer of cells called the germinal epithelium. As the immature sperm cells become more mature they move to the inner side and break way into the lumen of the tubule to be carried away to the epididymis for storage. The process of this production is shown in the next two diagrams.
The Sertoli cells are present to provide nourishment to the developing gametes and to aid with the development of the specialised shape of the sperm cells.
At the end of this production line, mature sperm look like this:
In between the tubules, inside the testes, are interstitial cells called Leydig cells. These secrete the hormone testosterone.
There are also blood vessels in close proximity, delivering nutrients and carrying away some testosterone to other target cells for the development and maintenance of secondary sexual characteristics, e.g. facial and pubic hair, deepening of the voice. The testosterone also stimulates the cells inside the testis involved in spermatogenesis.
Hormonal control of spermatogenesis
The control centres are the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus in the brain.
The hypothalamus secretes GnRH (gonadotrophin releasing hormone). This is released into the blood and stimulates the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland.
The anterior lobe of the pituitary gland secretes ICSH (interstitial cell stimulating hormone).
ICSH: this stimulates the leydig cells that produce testosterone.
FSH: this stimulates the seminiferous tubules, including the Sertoli cells. They produce sperm in response.
Note: Testosterone also acts on the seminiferous tubules and stimulates sperm production.
The testosterone feeds back to the hypothalamus and pituitary gland to switch off GnRH and ICSH release.
The Sertoli cells produce a hormone called inhibin that feeds back to the pituitary gland to switch off FSH release.
Since the action of the interstitial cells and Sertoli cells are inhibited, less testosterone and inhibin are released as a result. The inhibition of the hypothalamus and pituitary is lifted and the process can start again. Due to the levels of the hormones and their effects, the process is not noticeably cyclical - there aren't noticeable peaks and troughs in the levels of the hormones.
Female reproductive system and egg production
The production of eggs is called oogenesis. It takes place in the ovaries and begins before birth.
The outer layer of the ovary (the germinal epithelium) produces primary oocytes. It also produces follicle cells that congregate around the oocytes, forming a structure called the primary follicle.
By the time a baby girl is born, the primary oocytes in the primary follicles have started the first meiotic division but the process halts at the first stage (prophase I).
After puberty one of these develops each month. It completes meiosis I to form a secondary oocyte and first polar body (the latter of which will eventually disintegrate). The follicle cells around it proliferate to form a wall many cells thick called the theca. Fluid collects inside the structure to form a fluid-filled cavity.
The whole structure is called a Graafian follicle.
At a time controlled by hormones the secondary oocyte is released from the Graafian follicle and it leaves the ovary - a process called ovulation. The secondary oocyte with some surrounding follicle cells leaves the ovary and enters one of the oviducts. What is left behind on the surface of the ovary turns into a structure called the corpus luteum.
Hormonal control of oogenesis
As with males, the process of egg production is controlled by 2 centres in the brain - the hypothalamus and the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland. Unlike males, however, the process is cyclical with rises and falls in hormone levels. The cycle, called the menstrual cycle - takes about 28 days, with ovulation occurring in the middle at about day 14.
The hypothalamus releases GnRH: this stimulates the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland.
The pituitary gland releases FSH: this stimulates the development of follicles within the ovary.
The follicle secretes oestrogen: this stimulates the repair of the uterus wall. It also inhibits the further release of FSH so no new follicles develop in case pregnancy results. It also inhibits the release of LH from the pituitary gland until shortly before ovulation. Then the level of oestrogen rises which actually stimulates the release of LH and FSH.
A surge of LH: this causes ovulation and the development of the corpus luteum. LH feeds back to inhibit oestrogen release so, as a result, the levels of LH and FSH begin to fall.
The corpus luteum secretes progesterone: this stimulates the thickening and the vascularisation of the uterus wall in preparation for pregnancy...
If no pregnancy occurs: the corpus luteum degenerates, progesterone is no longer released and the lining of the uterus breaks down. The discharge of the wall is called menstruation. FSH release is no longer inhibited so the cycle can begin again and a new follicle can develop.
If pregnancy occurs: the corpus luteum persists due to a hormone (CG - chorionic gonadotrophin) being released.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


At Lace and Lilies, we LOVE weddings! At our initial consultation, we want to get to know you and develop an overall aesthetic for your special day. As an artistic, fun-loving team, we dedicate all of our time and effort to giving you an unforgettable experience. We provide all of your wedding day floral needs with a wide variety of rental items. We want to know more about you - let's talk flowers!


This summer you won't want to miss the annual Moparfest at the New Hamburg Fairgrounds. The weekend long car show has raised funds in support of The Sunshine Foundation of Canada for over two decades now. The event attracts over 1500 show vehicle displays and 18,000 attendees.
There will be a 50/50 draw and the ever exciting Engine Blow contest. A portion of 50/50 draw tickets will be donated to Sunshine from The New Hamburg Firebirds while Moparfest will donate proceeds from the Engine Blow contest.
Motor on over to Moparfest this August 18th-19th!


The Gents Senior's Texas Scramble Open 2018 took place yesterday with 156 players (39 teams) participating in fantastic weather.
Thanks to all the positive feedback regarding the course and clubhouse – this is always much appreciated.
Congratulations to all the prizewinners and hope to see all the teams back next year.
Vouchers will be issued shortly and sent to the team Captains' Home Clubs.


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Münchweiler an der Alsenz è un comune di 1.220 abitanti della Renania-Palatinato, in Germania.

Appartiene al circondario del Donnersberg (targa KIB) ed è parte della comunità amministrativa (Verbandsgemeinde) di Winnweiler.

Altri progetti

Collegamenti esterni

Comuni del circondario del Donnersberg

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Al hamdulillah in the holy month of Rajab and "subhana man huwa khaliq an noor".
(Glory to Him who is the Creator, the Light).
That from the secrets of the birth of light, it is in the reality of the 7th lunar month, and that light from the Divinely Presence, is the birth of the Muhammadan Reality. Alhamdulillah that opens into the holy month of Sha'ban in which that light of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) begins to illuminate all Creation.
In the way of marifa'h, from the teachers of reality, they remind us that everything is from the Muhammadan Light. That (understanding) has to be solid within the heart and it's in the understanding that real Tawheed, laa shareeka ala, nothing is like unto Allah (Azza wa Jal). Nothing is in the vicinity of Allah (Azza wa Jal). That has a 'nowhere-ness' and 'everywhere-ness' at the same time. That the greatness, azmatullah, is that Allah (Azza wa Jal) can be seen nowhere, but is present everywhere. And the manifestation and Qudrah (power) of Allah (Azza wa Jal) is the power of that Muhammadan Reality.
And to go back into our origin, to go back into our realities and begin to sew together what the heart understands, and what it knows, to reach the understanding of the `Arifeen. Because if we don't know where we came from then we don't know where we are going back to. We come from the ocean of Muhammadun Rasulullah (Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). And from that reality we came for a physical experience and the highest gift was to accept the Muhammadan Reality, Maqaam al-Mahmud, to say "Muhammadun Rasulullah," (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). To say, "Laa ilaaha ilAllah," is incomplete. What Allah (Azza wa Jal) wants is that you say, "Laa ilaaha ilAllah," but to complete it and achieve Maqaam al-Mahmud with "Muhammadun Rasulullah," (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).
Then, contemplating within the heart what Mawlana Shaykh is teaching and what we have been talking about for a few days, about the angels and the bowing down, and Allah (Azza wa Jal)'s consistent example in the Holy Qur'an about tashreef, respect and good manners. Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem `Allamal qur'an. Khalaqal Insan.
From Surat ar Rahman, that all this dunya is under Siffat ar Rahman. It means from that light, and from that majesty, is this light, and is this existence coming out. Allah (Azza wa Jal) is pointing out in Holy Qur'an: `allamal qur'an, khalaqal insaan.
The light of the Prophet is the first of Creation, and Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) described that he is the light of all Heavens. Before any light; before anything coming into existence Nooru Muhammadi was there and, "I was a Rasul, I was a Nabi before the creation of Adam,". Before Adam, (when he) was between clay and water that the Prophetic Station of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was eternally in that existence.
It means then (we understand) with tafakkur because Allah (Azza wa Jal) describes the realities are only understood by the people of tafakkur.
Why? because they are not reading for the sake of trying to complete it like it is a race, but you read and one ayah is enough for you to spend a month meditating (on it). It wasn't about trying to read fast and begin to sing like a parrot, and be a trained parrot. Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq took seven years on Surat al Baqara (second chapter of holy quran), to go into the depths and realities of Holy Qur'an.
It means they begin to teach that when Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is saying, "I and my Risalat is Qadeem, it is ancient in the world of light. That I am the Rasulullah in the Heavens." In the world of light Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is the Prophet of Allah (Azza wa Jal), the Khalifa (representative) of Allah (Azza wa Jal); the one who was created to speak for Allah (Azza wa Jal). Allah (Azza wa Jal) clarifies in Holy Qur'an that there is no one that can approach Allah (Azza wa Jal) except by a hijaab or a veil or through the Prophet or by inspiration within their heart.
And it was not (vouchsafed) to any mortal that Allah should speak to him Except By (it be) by revelation or from behind a veil, or (that) He sendeth a messenger to reveal what He will by His leave. Lo! He is Exalted, Wise.
You cannot go closer to the Sun, How could you approach Allah (Izat wal Jallai) ?
How do we know that understanding? Like the Sun, everybody can sit on the beach and take the sunlight, everybody takes the sunlight, everybody takes the sunlight, and the deep reality of the Sun. What nourishment comes from that light, what blessings come from that light, what existence you have in your physical reality from the light of the Sun? But yet you cannot approach that Sun. There is nothing you can create to go into that proximity of the Sun.
Allah (Azza wa Jal) says: if you can't come into the Sun, do you think the angels can come into My Presence? They become non-existent, they become qashiya, they become dust.
Allah (Azza wa Jal) describes that Presence: that just My Speech is Qul, it is "Qaaf, wal qur'an al majeed" through Lisaan al Haqq of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).
That Speech is a Power, because before the Qur'an is being seen, it is a source of Hamd. It is a Divinely Hamd (praise) from Allah (Azza wa Jal), only heard by Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)! There is no angel that hears that; only Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) can take the frequency and the Power and `Izzatullah from ati ullah wa ati ar-rasula wa ulul amri minkum (Holy Qur'an 4:59).
That is what that meaning is, that: My Qudrah would devastate all of Creation, nothing in Creation can contain My Power but I brought for you a Mercy! The arwah and light of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is created as a Mercy from Allah (Azza wa Jal); for Allah (Azza wa Jal) to be known through that Mercy.
It means (that Mercy) makes the frequency and the power of Allah (Azza wa Jal), to become cool and peaceful like the transformer at the power station. The transformer is a step down, it takes that high frequency and brings it to a frequency which you can take.
What Prophet (sallalahu alayhi wa sallam) heard from `allamal qur'an? Nobody has an understanding of what Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was hearing from Allah (Azza wa Jal)'s `Izzah. What the Sahabi (companions of Prophet Muhammad (s)) heard from Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), what `izzah was dressed by them when Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was reciting Holy Qur'an to his Companions? What frequency was Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) dressing them? What frequency were the Sahaabah dressing the tabi'yeen when they heard the Holy Qur'an? Those are energies. They weren't just reciting words, they were reciting frequencies and energies and qudrahs from Allah (Azza wa Jal)!
When Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was describing this Hadith that: you have to know that I have always been Rasulullah (saws) (messenger of Allah).
As long as there is Creation, it is from my light; angels are from the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), Heavens are from the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Arsh ar-Rahmaan is from the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam); everything is from the light of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).
قَالَ : يَا جَابِرُ ، إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَلَقَ قَبْلَ الأَشْيَاءِ نُورُ نَبِيِّكَ مِنْ نُورِهِ ، فَجَعَلَ ذَلِكَ النُّورِ يَدُورُ بِالْقُدْرَةِ حَيْثُ شَاءَ اللهُ ، وَلَمْ يَكُنْ فِي ذَلِكَ الْوَقْتِ لَوْحٌ وَلا قَلَمٌ ، وَلا جَنَّةٌ وَلا نَارٌ ، وَلا مُلْكٌ ، وِلا سَمَاءٌ وَلا أَرْضٌ ، وَلا شَمْسٌ وَلا قَمَرٌ، وَلا إِنْسٌ وَلا جِنٌّ.
Ya Jabir, in Allah khalaqa qablal Ashiya e Nooro Nabiyika min Noorehi. Faj'ala dhalikan Noore yadoro bil Qudrati haithu sha Allahlu, wa lam yakun fi dhalikal waqti lawhun wa la qalamun, wa la jannatun wa la Narun, wa la Mulkun, wa la samaun wa la ardun, wa la shamsun wa la qamarun, wa la insun wa la jinnun.
Who has been eternally taught by Allah (Azza wa Jal)? `Allama, why? because the 'Ayn is Allah's Ancient Knowledge and is dressing that Laam. Even the huroof (letters) comes as a daleel (proof) to the haqayiq (realities). The haqayiq is to understand that nothing can take Allah (Azza wa Jal)'s `Izza. Allah (Azza wa Jal) gives for us to understand in the way of marifa`ah: if I put My Speech on that mountain, it will be dust.
Means it's made of a Hamd; it is made of atoms and molecules, those molecules are not capable of holding Allah (Azza wa Jal)'s Energy, it would be dust. But Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)'s reality was created for this purpose. Lisaan al Haqq (tongue of truth) that Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) describes, "I have been created to speak for Allah (Azza wa Jal)." Not only the physical, this is the khatim (ending).
The only way of marifa`ah is that you come from Heavens to the Earth. So you are making a trench from your heavenly station to the Earth, then from the Earth you are going to dig back your trench to the Heavens and you complete the cycle. Means the light of the Heavens is coming down onto the Earth and then from Earth you dig your way back up to the Heavens. As you are digging it, everything is being illuminated by that light! It is like you are letting the floodgates of realities to dress. So means nothing knows its reality until Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)'s physicality arrived unto Earth. All the prophets were waiting to reach their marifa`ah.
As soon as Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) steps on the Earth and Allah (Azza wa Jal) opens the permission to return towards your reality, all of Creation, like a comet, is behind Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) waiting to reach their marifa`ah. If you go to a fancy party you can't enter into the hall until the guest of honor arrives, you can't be sitting there and eating everything. Allah (Azza wa Jal) is describing: he is the guest of honor, I don't want to see any of you until My Habib (beloved) comes. I don't care if you are a Prophet or a Messenger or an angel, you are all from His light (alayhi's salaat o salaam). It means sit there and wait until the Ascension of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). At that time they understood their reality.
'Allamal qur'an, khalaqal insaan means then Allah (Azza wa Jal) is always eternally teaching Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). The huroof comes and teaches: the 'Ayn is My Ancient Knowledge. The source of every reality is based on knowledge; every Creation is manifesting from a knowledge, it only flows through a lisaan, that Laam of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), Lisaan al-Haqq and then it goes to the Meem to clarify that all knowledge, all the `alims and `aleems, `ulama, everything have to be in a Muhammadan Reality but its source is Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Means all knowledge is coming from Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), from Allah (Azza wa Jal)'s ancient `Ayn; Siffat al-`Aleem is dressing the Meem.
We go back to `allamal qur'an khalaqal insaan, (that is) azeemat an Nabi (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Now who was teaching the angels? Shaytan, Azazeel. He was teaching. They want us to understand that his knowledge was from the Earth trying to rise to the Heavens. So when you read and you study, you study your Fiqh (jurisprudence) to understand your 'do's and don't', your left and right, your forward and backward. But never think that the knowledge that you are reading from the Earth is going to lift you to the Heavens. It is different from `allama.
Shaytan was reading and knowing and as a result he began to teach the angels. Allah (Azza wa Jal) wanted to show a lesson in the classroom, so He gathered all of them, "Come now sit here with the teacher that has been teaching all of you." When you have a teacher that learns from dunya, trying to reach towards Akhirah, usually they have bad characteristics. They have ghadab, anger, they talk bad, they are conceiving conniving; they do conspiracies, they plot and plan things, because it's all mixed with bad characteristics because they didn't reach tazkiyya yet. They did not reach perfection (of character).
Allah's We-ness is that, I taught and when I teach they have the best of character; they are humble, they are ghashiya, they are nothing, they have khushiyya when they are making their sajda and crying to Allah (Azza wa Jal).
Who taught himself has the characteristics of Shaytan, bad manners, backbiting, all sorts of anger, all sort of nastiness. And Allah (Azza wa Jal) wanted to show: that one who was teaching you (angels), look at your character now, because I am making My Khalifa. Means I am now making this Khalifa (representative) to appear.
They didn't see Allah (Azza wa Jal); there is no one (who can) see Allah (Azza wa Jal), this is all a hijaab of light, who were they hearing? They were hearing Rasulullah (Messenger of Allah) [Proophet Muhammad (saws]. They don't know where that light is; there is nobody who reached marifa`ah of Allah (Azza wa Jal); there is no way to see Allah (Azza wa Jal).
That wasn't their characteristic; the angelic reality is to be completely tasleem (submitting). So what happened?
Then, behind the veil, Allah (Azza wa Jal), because it is Allah (azza wa Jal) but speaking through who? Allah (Azza wa Jal) is speaking eternally through His RasulAllah, eternally through RasulAllah (Messenger of Allah – Muhammad (saws).
From that hijaab He's telling them, "That I know what you don't know. This characteristic that you learned from that one is (brought) out, he is kicked from the school, send him down to Earth," and he was expelled from that class.
Wanted to teach and then taught what? Isma kullaha.
Means the `allama isma kullaha is Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) teaching Sayyidina Adam (alayhi 'salaam), and giving the Muhammadan Light to Sayyidina Adam (alayhi 's-salaam).
As a result Allah (Azza wa Jal) is describing that: when that light came and the knowledges came, Allah (Azza wa Jal) said, "Do you know these?" and the angels said, "Subhaanaka, yaa Rabbi, Glory be to You, we only know what we have been taught and we know we haven't been taught that, we are not even near that light" and they made sajda to the light–not sajda of worship but sajdatul ihtiraam (prostration of Respect)!
Then when people are saying, "Should we stand for Mawlid an-Nabi (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)?" Eh, ahmaq, hit him on the head and say, "Are you crazy?" Allah (Azza wa Jal) is describing the angels are prostrating out of respect of the knowledge and the beatific lights that were flowing from Sayyidina Adam (alayhis salaam).
Means then this way of marifa`ah, the reality that is dressing, and the tashreef (honor) that is given by that knowledge is the whole way of approaching Allah (Azza wa Jal). That what love Allah (Azza wa Jal) has for Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), is unimaginable. What Allah (Azza wa Jal) bestowed upon that reality and that `uloom and knowledge, is unimaginable.
It is only through the schools of tarbiya that control their bad characteristics, their `uloom comes from the Heavens to their heart. Those who try to build themselves from dunya towards the Heaven have a difficult pursuit, because all the bad characteristics will be mixed with that knowledge.
We pray that Allah (Azza wa Jal) dress us from these realities, bless us from these realities. And grant us from the Heavenly Knowledges that illuminates from the Heavens into the soul. And through the good characteristics of the physicality, which prepares for the arrival of that light. When the body and nafs is conditioned and trained in a way that Allah (Azza wa Jal) finds sincerity within that person, He cleans that body, cleans that being, so that light can come into that vehicle and vessel of reality. It is a holy light of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). It is a blessed light of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) and those are the Muhammadan Realities.
We pray that Allah (Azza wa Jal) dresses us from this holy Rajab, dresses us from the holy Shaban and prepares for us the opening of the holy Ramadan in which Allah (Azza wa Jal) dresses and blesses those lights of Holy Qur'an and the akhlaaq (character) and the beauty of Sayyidina Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) inshaAllah.
Subhaana rabbika rabbil `amma yasifoon wa salaamun `alal mursaleen wal hamdulillahi rabbil `aalameen. Bi hurmatil Muhammad al-Mustafa wa bi sirri surat al-Fatiha.


To determine the importance of fear and anxiety at the time of an exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. To assess the influence of carers and health professionals on this fear and anxiety.
To determine the prevalence and clinical characteristics of absolute insulin deficiency in long-standing Type 2 diabetes, using a strategy based on home urinary C-peptide creatinine ratio measurement.


Retractable gel roller pen features a frosted and textured rubber grip, chrome plated tip section and automatic clip retracting mechanism. Medium point black gel writing ink is standard.
Price includes your custom imprint in any one standard PMS color on the barrel. Multiple imprint colors and locations are available for an additional charge.


You visited the company's web page Christopher's. The company is located in the state Alabama, the city of Birmingham. The legal address of our company is 1935 Hoover Court Suite F111 Birmingham, AL 35226. For more information, please call (205) 979-5405.


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In 1944 Miami's First Black Police Officers Weren't Allowed To Arrest White People
Five African-American men made history on September 1, 1944, when they were sworn in as the first Black police officers in the Miami Police Department. However, unlike their White counterparts, Ralph White, Moody Hall, Clyde Lee, Edward Kimball, and John Milledge were referred to as "patrolmen" rather than "officers."
They were sent to the "Central Negro District," which encompassed sections of Liberty City and Colored Town, dubbed "Overtown" by locals. According to NBC Miami, they were "forced" to function out of a dentist's office until the Black police precinct and courthouse was established in 1950, resulting in a distinct and segregated headquarters.
The Second World War was coming to a conclusion at the time the five patrolmen were sworn in. Many Black troops returned to Miami after serving in the war, resulting in a rise in the city's Black population. The city's Black population surpassed 43,000 in 1944. According to a study from PANACHE Magazine, the majority of them lived in the Central Negro District, once known as "Colored Town."
As Miami's population swelled during Jim Crow, there were fewer white officers patrolling the streets, especially in Liberty City and Overtown, owing to the dread of entering these Black neighborhoods. During this time, leaders of the newly formed Negro Citizens League advised the city that a Black police presence would be required.
According to PANACHE Magazine, the city listened, and Don D. Rosenfelder, Director of the Public Safety Department in charge of police services, began hiring the first Black police officers by asking Black leaders to nominate applicants. Because Whites were opposed to the idea of training Black officers during segregation, it was done "under extreme secrecy."
The "first five" of Miami, Lee, Hall, Kimball, Milledge, and White, were also sworn in secretly. "They weren't bitter, they were grateful for their life experience," Terrance Cribbs-Lorrant, the director of a museum in Overtown that celebrates the tale of the five Black officers, told NBC Miami.
According to NBC Miami, these five guys were not authorized to arrest White persons out of segregation, "even if a crime was happening directly in front of them." They couldn't operate out of the main Miami Police Station, so instead of using automobiles, they patrolled by strolling and riding bicycles. According to the South Florida Times, detained prisoners were transported to jail on bicycle handlebars or by strolling and catching rides from locals.
Furthermore, the five guys had no radio contact and were unable to appear in court in their uniforms. Additionally, there was no job security or retirement benefits.
After a year, the number of Black patrolmen had increased to 15, and they were assigned to Coconut Grove's historically Black neighborhoods.
"The men were assigned a set route to travel between Overtown and Coconut Grove that would prohibit them from engaging with Whites as much as possible," according to PANACHE Magazine. They were told to clear clogged walkways, prohibit all gambling and swearing, seize firearms, and stop and frisk suspicious people or known troublemakers. As a result, violent crimes in Black neighborhoods dropped by half."
On November 1, 1946, Milledge became the first Black officer to be murdered in the line of duty. Others could watch how the department changed over time, notably when it was integrated in 1963. Today, the historic Black Precinct and Courthouse Museum commemorate the history of Miami's "first five" African-American police officers who paved the way for African-Americans in law enforcement.


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"Historical dictionaries of religions, philosophies, and movements ;, no. 32" serie.
Publisher: Includes bibliographical references (p. 253-310)..
Includes bibliographical references (p. 253-310).
2nd ed. of "Historical dictionary of Mormonism".
We found some servers for you, where you can download the e-book "Historical dictionary of Mormonism" by Davis Bitton PDF for free. The More e-Books team wishes you a fascinating reading!


2. In a large bowl, gently toss all ingredients together.
3. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet and spread out in a single layer.
4. Bake, tossing occasionally until dry and crisp, about 40 minutes.
5. Cool slightly and serve.
6. TIP: These are best when freshly made but save any leftovers in an air tight container to use in salads as croutons substitutes.


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A new generation of CEOs: Running a business in West Africa as a woman
Also available in: Français What is it like to set up and run an incubator as a woman? The answer, much like anywhere else in the world for working women, is that it's complicated. In many…
Alexandre Laure, Niamh O'Sullivan | October 25, 2017
Gender, Digital Development, Competitiveness
A new generation of CEOs: Businesswomen in Africa discuss gender inclusion in the private sector
Also available in: Français As we saw in our second blog, [[tweetable]]entrepreneurship plays a critical role in promoting sustainable growth[[/tweetable]]. Yet, in many West-African countries,…
A new generation of CEOs: Businesswomen in Africa discuss incubation, development, and the start-up mindset
Also available in: Français
A new generation of CEOs: Six businesswomen discuss entrepreneurship and start-ups in West Africa
Also available in: Français Across West Africa, it's very difficult to find a workplace as innovative and diverse as business incubators. Known for their young, energized, and often gender-…
It takes an ecosystem: How networks can boost Africa's incubators
Also available in: Français Dynamic entrepreneurs supported by the North-South incubator Bond'Innov. Photo Credit: Bond'Innov Across francophone Africa, incubators are emerging rapidly to…
Alexandre Laure, Simon Duchatelet | September 07, 2017
Start-up from scratch? How entrepreneurship can generate sustainable development and inclusion in the Sahel
Also available in: Français In a first for Africa's Sahel region, entrepreneurs from Senegal to Chad assembled in Niamey, Niger, for the SahelInnov Expo last month to showcase their businesses and…
Alexandre Laure | March 20, 2017
Climate Change, Competitiveness
Structured dialogue, value chain and competitiveness: A journey through implementation, from Copenhagen to Kabul
Afghanistan. Photo by Steve Utterwulghe. This latest blog post should start with a mea culpa. Indeed, my 2015 work plan for public-private dialogue (PPD) did start in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, not…
Steve Utterwulghe | May 13, 2015
Governance, Competitiveness, Infrastructure & Public-Private Partnerships, Digital Development, Trade
Sharing Experiences and Insights to Enhance Gender Equality in Sub-Saharan Africa
On February 27, a high-level regional workshop kicked off in Lomé, Togo, with the participation of Ministers of gender affairs and officials from 11 economies from West and Central Africa focusing…
Paula Tavares | March 06, 2014
Gender, Governance, Digital Development, Social Development
How to increase investment in the Middle East and North Africa
In light of recent political and social unrest in the region, foreign investors are taking a "wait-and-see" attitude to projects in the Middle East and North Africa. For the region's investment…
Robert Whyte, Carlos Griffin | February 04, 2013


A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) is a book published by the Project Management Institute (PMI), outlining a set of standard terminology and guidelines for Project Management. The PMBOK Guide was first published by the PMI as a white paper in 1983 in an attempt to document and standardize generally accepted project management information and practices. The first edition was published in 1996 followed by the second edition in 2000. In 2004, the third Edition was published with major changes from the previous editions. The fourth Edition was released on December 31, 2008. Work on the fifth edition was completed in 2012, and now in 2019 you can now order the latest PMBOK® Guide 6th Edition on the PMI website or on Amazon.
Does this mean that I will have and "old" PMP certificate ?
No. The current version of the PMBOK Guide has no influence over your PMP status. You can compare this to your high-school diploma. Even if you received your high-school diploma years back and the school curriculum has changed many times since then, your diploma and your status are just as valid today as they were when you finished high school.
What revision of PMBOK Guide is PM Champion's study material based on?
The main modules will include a series of self-assessment questions (PDF format) allowing the students to test their understanding of each Knowledge Area.


In order to encourage and appreciate the skill of oration, writing and aesthetics, the college organizes a variety of Co-Curricular Activities. Students actively participate even in inter-collegiate activities and secure prizes, bringing laurels to the institution. These activities aid in developing a positive attitude towards physical and mental health of the students.


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Home / Movies / Drama
The Defiant Ones (1958)
SKU: NULL Category: Drama Tag: Drama
Nominated* for nine Academy AwardsÂ(r), including Best Picture, The Defiant Ones broke new ground by delivering its message of racial tolerance through a fast-moving blend of action and suspense. It remains "a raw, powerful film that is as exciting as it is moving, real and literate"(Variety). Joker Jackson (Tony Curtis) and Noah Cullen (Sidney Poitier) are two convicts on the run. Escaping from a Southern work gang, the two men are bound together by an unbreakable iron chain and separated by an unbridled hatred towards each other. Relentlessly pursued by a posse and bloodhounds, they put aside their differences to survive. But when a lonely woman (Cara Williams) breaks their chain and deliberately sends Cullen to certain death, Jackson must decide what's more important: saving Cullen…or saving himself. *1958: Best Picture, Actor (Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier), Supporting Actor (Theodore Bikel), Supporting Actress (Cara Williams), Director,Story and Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (won), Cinematography (won), Film Editing
In The Wake of the Bounty(1933)
Devil and the Deep (1932)
Colonel Effingham's Raid (1945)
Dishonored Lady (1947)


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Adultery charge mum held in Dubai cells
A MOTHER-of-two, formerly from Cheshire, who is accused of cheating on her estranged husband, has spent three weeks in a Dubai police cell awaiting trial. Sally Antia, 44, was arrested for breaching the emirate state's morality rules on May 2. She pleaded guilty to adultery but has been denied bail. Her alleged lover, who has denied adultery, is also in custody.
Mike Keegan
A MOTHER-of-two, formerly from Cheshire, who is accused of cheating on her estranged husband, has spent three weeks in a Dubai police cell awaiting trial.
Sally Antia, 44, was arrested for breaching the emirate state's morality rules on May 2.
She pleaded guilty to adultery but has been denied bail. Her alleged lover, who has denied adultery, is also in custody.
Mrs Antia married her husband in 1995 and they lived on Westgate, in Hale, before moving to Dubai.
She went out to the middle-eastern state to work in corporate entertainment.
Former neighbours in the upmarket Altrincham village have spoken of their shock at her arrest.
One said: "It's a terrible thing to have happened to the family."
Mrs Antia, who is originally from Merseyside, and her alleged lover are expected to remain in custody before facing a court again later this week.
Her estranged husband has been accused of reporting her to the police in a bid to improve the chances of him winning custody of their children.
Vincent Antia, from Lincolnshire, is said to have alerted police that his wife was having an affair before their divorce came through - which is a crime in the United Arab Emirates.
They arrested Mrs Antia and her alleged lover as they left one of Dubai's top hotels, the Radisson SAS Deira Creek.
Since the arrests the Antias' two daughters, aged 13 and 11, have been living with their father in the family's luxury waterside home.
Hale and Hale Barns
CoronavirusUK to shut all travel corridors as fears grow over new coronavirus variantFrom 4am on Monday anyone who wishes to travel to the UK must have proof of a negative Covid-19 test in the last 72 hours
UK records 1,280 further deaths and more than 55,000 new cases in the last 24 hours
Ian Evatt makes frank admission over Bolton Wanderers summer transfer window plans


or through our Instagram and Twitter accounts @robirdsortho. Our patients can also access their accounts in a password-protected site over the internet to view their next appointment, check their balances, make payments and even view their x-rays and photographs taken to study their case.
The office always has a clean and professional look.
We treat patients of all ages, from age eight to eighty. We provide a large selection of dental and orthodontic treatments from cross bite correction for children, to Invisalign® orthodontics for adults and teenagers. Our goal is to make our patients smile and provide whatever dental and orthodontic treatments are required to meet that goal.
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For every industry
With every technology
For every requirement
Vertical lift module
Pallet Runner
When we step in
Why automha
Why choose Automha? Look at its numbers, the quality of its solutions, its results, and do the math.
Today Automha is a leading technology company through its capacity to turn constraints into opportunities, designing each project based on our customers' requirement – thanks to its team of designers and products, systems and solutions.
Automation is the result of ideas, inventions, implementations coming from our technical background and built up over the last 30 years out of new sciences such as electronics, information technology and mechatronics.
Automha's key strengths can be summarized by the 5 principles of the Automha Code, which provide the DNA of technological information, and reveal the historical origins of Italian high-tech.
Automha code
The Automha code is our DNA, a summary of experience and innovation,
technology and creativity, actions and intentions, constraints and possibilities.
Fluens fabrica
Moving system
Fluens Fabrica means flowing system and refers to the first conveyor belts, built by our ancestors 2000 years ago to transport the most valuable commodity: water.
Automha, the modern personification of the Italian high-tech industry, has developed horizontal material handling systems – the building blocks of any integrated logistics – since 1979.
Surgens in excelsis
Rising to excellence
Surgens in Excelsis means the quest for spiritual elevation, which has taken architecture to new heights as tangible symbols of excellence since the year 1000.
1000 years later, Automha introduced the first automated storage and retrieval system, that can store pallets on shelving and recover them automatically.
Motu proprio was a self-propelled car designed in 1478 by Leonardo da Vinci in search of the utopian dream of perpetual motion driven by internal energy.
In 2010 Automha rolled out Supercap, a new concept of battery-less machine which works in any climatic conditions thanks to its own internal energy source, a super capacitor inspired by the arms industry.
Godlike by automation
In classical theatre, Deus ex machina is a character that suddenly appears on stage (dropped from above using wires or pulleys) resolving the final scene, the result of the combined genius of writers, set designers and engineers.
From a combination of technology and creativity comes the functionality of the automated warehouse, that can make boxes and pallets appear and disappear, as the actors and scenery at the director's command.
Forma mentis
Mental order
Forma Mentis is a Latin phrase that refers to the human capacity to rationalize chaos, transforming reality into an ordered system, the ultimate expression being the invention of the personal computer (Italy, 1963).
Today Automha is the market leader in intra-logistics automation: goods are processed as information, quickly and accurately, as part of a circular economy, where time is key.
Are you interested? Contact us!
almawareForma 2 03.04.2016


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2018's Best Places to Own Where You Vacation
We've all had those vacations that we wish could last forever, but unfortunately, most of the places we stay require a check-out date. The new residential resorts below all include the option to purchase a home in paradise, so your favorite vacation spot can become a home to return to again and again.
Rock House (Turks and Caicos, Providenciales): Rock House, the latest residential resort from Grace Bay Resorts, will feature a collection of luxury cottages nestled into the yet-to-be-developed cliffs of Providenciales' north shore once it breaks ground later this year. The project, which launched sales in April 2017, will capture the allure of hillside European towns like Capri and Antibes, providing a private, cliff-side option for buyers coveting an alternative to the numerous beachfront resorts typically found in the Caribbean. Each home, crafted by Coast Architects with interiors designed by AD100 interior designer Shawn Henderson, will include private shower gardens, oversized soaking tubs, eclectic Scandinavian and custom-made furnishings and 180-degree views of the archipelago's barrier reef and Atlantic Ocean. Upon completion, the resort will also feature five-star hotel amenities like a relaxing spa, energizing fitness center, winding jogging trails and a signature restaurant and main infinity pool both set upon a soaring hilltop. Pricing of the studio to two-bedroom cottages ranges from $600,000 to $1.625 million.
Caroline Bay (Bermuda): Carolina Bay is a 182-acre ultra-luxury, master planned waterfront destination and community located in the serene west end of the island in Southampton and Sandys Parishes. With its pink sand and crystal-clear beaches, the destination will be home to the fifth Ritz-Carlton Reserve in the world and only third in the world with the luxury branded residences. What's more? The destination also boasts a superyacht marina which is now open. Move-ins are slated for summer 2018.
Mandarina in Nayarit, Mexico: a collection of 55 private four-, five- and eight-bedroom villas that are among the first One&Only Private Homes in the world. The homes offer up to 13,000 square feet of seamless indoor and outdoor living, and amenities include world-class dining, tailored adventures and a kids' club.
The Residences at Mandarin Oriental, Boca Raton: For those preferring to buy stateside, these 92 coastal residences on Florida's east coast will connect to a luxury hotel. Priced between $1.3 million and $13 million, the homes offer the combination of downtown convenience and seaside living, and will become part of one of only three Mandarin-branded condo buildings in the U.S. Move-ins are slated for 2020.


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Christian Persecution Around the World « previous next »
Author Topic: Christian Persecution Around the World (Read 38111 times)
Buddhist Clerics Take Christians Captive
Added: Dec 22nd, 2008 7:46 AM
Monks hold converts in pagoda to forcibly turn them back to Buddhism.
DHAKA, Bangladesh (Compass Direct News) -- Buddhist clerics and local council officials are holding 13 newly converted Christians captive in a pagoda in a southeastern mountainous district of Bangladesh in an attempt to forcibly return them to Buddhism.
A spokesman for the Parbatta Adivasi (Hill Tract) Christian Church told Compass on condition of anonymity that "the plight of the Christians is horrifying."
Local government council officials in Jorachuri sub-district in Rangamati district, some 300 kilometers (186 miles) southeast of Dhaka, are helping the Buddhist monks to hold the Christians against their will, he said.
"The 13 tribal Christians were taken forcefully to a pagoda on Dec. 10 to accept Buddhism against their will," he said. "They will be kept in a pagoda for 10 days to perform the rituals to be Buddhists – their heads were shaved, and they were given yellow saffron robes to dress in."
All the captive Christians are men between 28 and 52 years old, he said. They became Christians around four months ago at various times in the country, which has a Buddhist population of 0.7 percent. Muslims make up nearly 90 percent of the Bangladeshi population, with Hindus accounting for about 9 percent, according to government figures.
According to the source, two Buddhist clerics, Pronoyon Chakma and Jianoprio Vikku, and two local council members, Vira Chakma and Rubichandra Chakma, were behind the anti-Christian activities along with nine other Buddhist leaders.
"It's the first time they have taken 13 Christians to the pagoda to make them Buddhist – this is how they plan to make Buddhists of all the converted Christians in that area," he said. "The pagoda has little capacity to accommodate them; otherwise they would hold captive more than 13 people."
The Christian leader said Buddhist leaders and local council officials have warned Christians to return to Buddhism or be evicted, saying, "You cannot live here – you have to leave this place with your family members because you became Christians. Those who became Christians cannot live in this predominantly Buddhist area."
Fearing for their lives, the source said, some area Christians have gone into hiding.
Mogdhan Union Council Chairman Arun Kanti Chakma, the source said, warned that Christian converts would be ostracized, beaten, and – assuming they returned to Buddhism only to return to Christianity – killed.
"The chairman threatened to beat the Christians unless they change their faith to Buddhism," he said. "The chairman also threatened, 'If you become Christian again, we will not keep you alive.'"
In another mountainous neighborhood in the Khaokhali area near Jorachuri, about 50 recently converted Christians have been cut off from all communications. They are barred from going to Rangamati town and are living in isolation.
"Those captors and other influential Buddhists leaders are threatening other converted Christians that they will face the same consequences as the 13 captives are facing," the source said. "They are warning us, 'All of you should be reconverted to Buddhism in the same way.'"
About 400 people in the district have become Christians over the past year. Like Buddhists, Christians make up less than 1 percent of the Bangladeshi population of 153.5 million.
Christians in the district have not informed police, fearing that any police action would infuriate terrorist groups among the tribal people of the area. The source said terrorist groups have been known to put the lives of Christians in jeopardy at the slightest provocation.
"We did not inform police because underground terrorist groups of those tribal people would get riled up by any kind of police action, and our life would come to a sticky end," he said. "If we tell police, it will create more problems."
In addition, he added, the threatened area lies in hills surrounded by nearly impassable mountain terrain, making access unlikely for police action against the captors.
Tajikistan Churches Facing Closure In New Year
Added: Dec 26th, 2008 1:31 AM
DUSHANBE/BUDAPEST -- A major Christian rights group warned Tuesday, December 23, that many churches in the former Soviet republic of Tajikistan in 2009, if a new draft law requiring them to re-register under restrictive conditions is adopted by parliament.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) told BosNewsLife that the legislation will also impact the Muslim community in the country, as many mosques may be forced to close down.
Proposed legislation outlining the plans was reportedly send to parliamentarians for approval last month by autocratic President Emomali Rahmon, a former cotton farm boss, not known for tolerating dissent. His People's Democratic Party holds virtually all seats in parliament.
The draft text reportedly enforces state controls over the activity of religious organizations, limits religious education and imposes government censorship over religious literature. "If passed, all of Tajikistan's religious organizations will be obliged to re-register either as 'religious organizations' or as 'religious communities', the latter having no legal status," CSW said. "Many may lose their legal status and some could face closure due to harsher criteria for registration," the group added.
WIDESPREAD CONCERNS
Tajik human rights have expressed concerns over President Emomali Rahmon's unusual decision to send this draft religion law to parliament himself, CSW added. "Normally draft laws are sent to parliament by the government, and the previous draft religion law was sent only by the government's Religious Affairs Committee."
Forum 18, another rights group, said some analysts interpret this as an indication of the political importance of this new law. The Tajikistan Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has reportedly expressed concern at "the vagueness of many of the articles" and details in the draft law, pointing out that interpretation will therefore fall on local authorities.
It added that OSCE commitments "are quite clear" when it comes to the issue of religion and freedom of conscience. CSW Advocacy Director, Tina Lambert said she fears "this draft law falls short of internationally accepted standards regarding freedom of religion and belief." She said that CSW has urged legislators to reconsider the text of "this restrictive draft law". In addition, she said, the international community should "speak out against a trend in Tajikistan" and the region as there have been "many similar laws being proposed across Central Asia in recent months."
CHRISTIANITY THREAT?
Christianity and other religious groups have often been seen as a threat to the power base of autocratic leaders in Tajikistan and other areas, BosNewsLife monitored.
The current president has been was elected chairman of the Supreme Council of Tajikistan in 1992 after the country's first post-Soviet leader, Rahmon Nabiyev, was forced to resign.
Emomali Rakhmon - now in third term as president - was elected president in 1994 and re-elected in 1999 when his term was extended to seven years.
In 2006 he won a third term in office in an election which international observers said was neither free nor fair. Opposition parties boycotted the vote, reportedly dismissing it as a "Soviet-style staged attempt at democracy."
Pakistan: Policeman Tortures, Paralyzes Christian
Disabled Christian waits in 9-year legal limbo, sent to prison for 'kidnapping.'
ISTANBUL (Compass Direct News) -- A Pakistani Christian boy's quarrel with a Muslim policeman's son has led to his father's imprisonment, torture, paralysis, and five-year prison sentence.
The father's health condition has become so fragile that he was temporarily released from prison and sent to a Faisalabad hospital on Sunday (Dec. 21). Emanuel Masih, 43, is now in stable condition, his attorney told Compass.
Masih, of Faisalabad, a father of six and a former street sweeper, is trying to commute his prison sentence after police officer Omer Draz tortured him and had him imprisoned on trumped-up charges originating from a quarrel between their sons nine years ago.
The situation began in 1999 when his son Saleem, 9 at the time, was involved in a dispute with Draz's son at the childrens' Muslim-majority elementary school. The next day to protect Saleem, Emanuel Masih and his brother-in-law Amin Masih accompanied Saleem to a bus station, along with Saleem's brothers, to subdue the police officer. Draz, however, attacked Saleem and Emanuel Masih's other sons.
Following the incident Draz conspired with his housecleaner Zaniran Bibi, a Christian, to have Emanuel Masih arrested. She claimed that Emanuel Masih was responsible for the kidnapping of her son, who had gone missing some time earlier.
There was no evidence to link Emanuel Masih to the kidnapping, his attorney said.
Police arrested Emanuel Masih along with Amin Masih, who was also falsely implicated in the kidnapping, without possibility of bail. The two men were tortured for a month, according to a report from the Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS) advocacy group.
Draz had a regular routine of torture for Emanuel Masih and his brother-in-law: He gathered them together, dragged them outside the police station and beat them with iron rods. A month of these beatings paralyzed Emanuel Masih's arms and legs.
"They took (them) to a private house and beat them there," said CLAAS lawyer Akbar Durrani to Compass. "They used a separate house because they are afraid of the courts."
Emanuel Masih was then sent to judicial lock-up since he was too weak to attend a court hearing. The prison superintendent was so surprised at his condition he called on Emanuel Masih's younger brother, Jabar Masih, to provide him physical care.
Emanuel Masih is also illiterate. Due to his injuries he could not work and had to rely on donations from charity groups. He has regained partial use of his legs but still cannot use his arms. He has been unemployed since 1999.
The two men were eventually released on bail. In the intervening nine years, Emanuel Masih and Amin Masih continued to attend court hearings. But on May 24 they were arrested and given a five-year prison sentence along with a fine of 25,000 rupees (US$320). Lawyers appealed the decision in September at a Faisalabad court.
Trying to get out
Emanuel Masih could be released from prison due to an article in Pakistan criminal law that requires proper facilities for an incapacitated person. If they are not available the prisoner can be released without a court order.
In September Durrani filed a petition of release to Pakistani Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta, who is in charge of the country's internal security. Without the use of his arms, Emanuel Masih could not survive in prison unless Amin assisted him.
"His brother-in-law feeds and washes him," Durrani said. "That's why he has been able to survive until now."
Gupta requested a medical examination of Emanuel Masih, which declared him incapacitated. The final decision to let him go rests with the jail superintendent, who received the report from the home secretary in early December.
Faisalabad is located in Punjab, near the Indian border. Radical religious elements in Punjab have become active in carrying out Islamic terrorist acts outside Pakistani borders. Two of the nine identified gunmen in the Nov. 26 attacks in Mumbai that killed 188 and injured 293 were from this city of 2.6 million.
On Wednesday, Dec. 17, Muslims set fire to a church in a nearby village as its parishioners were decorating for Christmas. The attackers left behind a letter telling the Christians they would be damned to hell if they did not become Muslims, according to International Christian Concern.
Parish priest Yaqoob Yousaf has called for security forces to arrest the culprits quickly, for fear of similar attacks on the congregation during its Christmas Day services.
China Launches Christmas Crackdown On Christian Worship
BEIJING, CHINA -- Christians in several parts of China were behind bars on Christmas Day after a police crackdown on worship services and Bible study, a Christian advocacy group said Thursday, December 25.
In one of the latest incidents, officials of the country's main law enforcement agency, the Public Security Bureau (PSB), raided a house church Christmas party in Yucheng county of Henan province on Christmas Eve, detaining nine Christian women, said US-based China Aid Association (CAA), which has close contacts with the believers.
They, "were reenacting the nativity [scene] on the street, and police charged the women with "organizing illegal religious activities. " The women, including Yue Zengyun who led the group, are currently being held at Detention Center of Yucheng County," CAA told BosNewsLife. "The PSB officers demanded the family members pay a fine for the women to be released," the group said.
The raid came after authorities in Anhui province reportedly seized a house church building and a related school in Dianlong village providing Bible studies the previous day.
Tensions in began December 22 when security forces of several agencies and Religious Affairs officials interrupted a Bible training gathering affiliated with the house church in Dianlong village , arresting 19 students and two pastors, CAA said. They were released several hours later after they were interrogated, "forcibly photographed and videotaped" the group said, adding that several books were confiscated.
The next day, December 23, authorities forced church leaders Zhu Jianguo and Cheng Donglai to send the students home and "read a statement of the government in which they claimed they were notified that Cheng Donglai illegally ran a school, then pronounced the school abolished," CAA said in a statement. "Government officials also announced that they would demolish or sell the building used for the Bible training."
SELLING BUILDING
Officials allegedly photographed and videotaped all materials at the site and threatened church members that anyone touching the materials would be in punished. "The County Bureau of Religion posted sealing tape to shut off the house church building," CAA explained. Both church leaders reportedly expect to be summoned by local police soon.
Earlier in on December 21, a house church in Yili city in China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region, was reportedly banned. "Pastor Xie Xianhua, who leads the church, was warned he could face arrest if he continued his house church service," CAA said, adding that it is still investigating the case.
The latest raids are viewed as a setback for rights activists who had urged China to improve religious rights after the recent Beijing Olympic Games. China's government has denied human rights abuses, saying it only targets "illegal groups" and what it considers as "dangerous sects". It says China's up to 130 million Christians are free to worship with the state-backed churches.
Concerns Over Detained Egypt Priest Amid Attacks
Posted on: 2009-05-20 06:11:01
By Worthy News Middle East Service
CAIRO, EGYPT (Worthy News)-- Representatives of Egypt's Christian minority, already rocked by several attacks in recent weeks, continued their attempts Wednesday, May 20 to obtain the release of a priest they say was sentenced to five years hard labor for crimes he did not commit.
Mattaos Wahba, a priest of Archangel Michael Church in the area of Kerdasa in Egypt's Geza region, was sentenced in October on charges of conducting a marriage between an ex-Muslim and a Christian with false documents, said The Free Copts, an advocacy group and website for Egyptian Christians, known as Copts
However the convert, Mariam Nabil, told a popular television show, A Daring Question last month that "Father Mattaos" was innocent as he did "not have any role" in getting her forged Christian identification papers. I did not know him then, as this took place in 2004 and I got married in 2006, according to a translation provided by The Free Copts.
Nabil she saw no other option than providing forged Christian documents. I have the right to have an ID card that reflects my true religious affiliation. [But] The Egyptian government does not give Muslims who convert to Christianity a legal alternative to get these papers. Had I been a Christian who wanted to convert to Islam, I would have had all the help I needed. But, because I am leaving Islam they put hurdles in my way, she added.
DIFFICULT CASE
Church representatives said it was difficult to see for priests to control papers during a marriage ceremony. The Free Copts and lawyers hope the television interview will boost Wahba's changes of being released. However it comes at a time of mounting tensions in this predominantly Muslim nation, which saw two attacks earlier this month,
On May 10 a small homemade bomb exploded in Cairo near Saint Mary Church, the Coptic community considers a holy site, police said, reportedly interrupting a wedding and a Bible study held in the historic building.
While nobody was injured, the device damaged a car and a second one was found and detonated by police in the same area near a Coptic church in the northeast of Cairo, investigators said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility reported. Earlier on May 2 three Muslims repeatedly stabbed Coptic Christian Girgis Yousry, 21, as the army conscript was leaving the gates of the church of Saint Mary in the area of Minya in Upper Egypt, Christians said.
The violence reportedly left him with serious injuries to internal organs, and he was taken to the district hospital, where he was still receiving treatment Wednesday May 18. There has been growing concern about Islamic extremism and against Copts, who comprise roughly 10 percent of Egypt's 80 million strong population.
Coptic Christians are also suffering under a recent decision by the government to slaughter the country's estimated pigs because of Swine flu, although no single case of the disease has been reported so far, rights groups and United Nations officials said. While consuming pig meat is despised by Muslims, many Copts are involved in the industry.
Burma Military Involved In Massive Rape And Discrimination, investigators claim
Worthy News Staff
RANGOON, BURMA (Worthy News)-- United Nations officials on Saturday, May 23, remained concerned over the situation of Burma's political prisoners, including detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, as Christian rights investigators reported fresh evidence of "human rights violations" by the ruling military in the country.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) told BosNewsLife it just returned from a three-week trip to the region with the 'Free Burma Rangers' group to investigate widespread the Burma's military involvement in widespread "rape, religious discrimination and land confiscation in Kachin State", an area of the Kachin ethnic group, including many Christian believers.
In a detailed report of the visit to the Kachin, CSW quotes the testimony of a 21 year-old Bible school student who was "raped and strangled by two Burma Army soldiers."
After describing her ordeal, the student told CSW she had heard that one of the soldiers had raped many girls, but had never been brought to justice. Every woman should be careful. My experience is an example for other girls I want justice to be done.
REBEL GROUP
CSW said it also met representatives of the rebel Kachin Independence Organisation a day after the military government of Burma, also known as Myanmar, ordered it to surrender its arms and soldiers "to Burma Army control."
In addition, CSw said met a Chin pastor, now in Malaysia, who "had been forced" by Burmas military government to deliver a speech at a public rally "denouncing human rights campaigners and claiming to enjoy complete religious freedom."
It comes at a time when observers said the military government is concerned about world opinion as the U.N. Security Council in a unanimous statement expressed concern about the "political impact" of the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi charging her with violating the terms of her house arrest.
Christians among the Karen, another ethnic group fighting for more autonomy and human rights, say they would accept Aung San Suu Kyi as Burma's leader as she is seen as a voice of reconciliation, BosNewsLife learned.
BURMA DENIES
Burma's foreign minister, Nyan Win, has denied allegations that the government had framed its case against Aung San Suu Kyi.
In an interview published Friday, May 22, in the state-run newspaper New Light of Myanmar he suggested the incident could have been created by the opposition to attract international attention, the Voice of America (VOA) network reported.
Burmese authorities have accused Aung San Suu Kyi of violating the terms of her six-year house arrest for allowing American John Yettaw to stay at her house for two days after swimming to her lakeside residence on May 3.
Belarus Evangelical Church Faces Imminent Eviction By Security Forces
Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief
MINSK/BUDAPEST (Worthy News-- There was uncertainty about the future of one of the largest evangelical churches in Belarus Tuesday, June 2, after authorities ordered it to abandon its building in the capital Minsk.
New Life Church confirmed that it received a letter from the Property Maintenance and Repair Department (PMRD) of the Moscow District of Minsk demanding that the church leaves its current complex not later than Monday, June ,1 or face forcible eviction.
The church needs to undertake necessary measures not later than June 1, 2009 to transfer the legal documents for its building and sign the deal of the buildings transfer and also vacate it, the letter said. In case the church does not, the Department will have to undertake necessary measures to settle the case in accordance to the current legislation.
In an interview, the head of PMRDs legal department, Ludmila Bulyga, suggested that the eviction could be carried out by security forces. They (the church) need to vacate the building and the land since it was never zoned for religious usage. The courts ruling will be carried out by the courts officers, who have the full right to use law-enforcing agencies, she said.
MOUNTING CONCERN
Human rights groups have expressed concerns about the situation, saying it could mark another stage in alleged wide spread persecution of devoted Christians in the former Soviet republic.
The events... are likely to have a major impact on religious freedom throughout Belarus, said Stuart Windsor , National Director of Britain-based Christian Solidarity Worldwide. If New Life Church is forced to shut its doors, the hundreds of other churches across the country who have been denied the right to register will have real reason to fear the same fate, Windsor warned.
The CSW official urged the European Union to intervene at a time when it just launched its Eastern Partnership initiative which is meant to promote respect for human rights in countries including Belarus. The EU, he said, should make it absolutely clear that the religious liberty of the members of New Life Church must be defended and upheld.
New Life Church, which comprises over a thousand active members, has been the target of repeated government fines and attempts to shut it down since it was established in the early 1990s, according to local Christians.
LEGAL BATTLE
The latest ruling comes as part of a legal battle with the Minsk City Executive Committee which has been ongoing since 2005 after the church purchases a former cowshed to accommodate its growing congregation.
In addition, recent aid from the Netherlands was halted by authorities, the church said. In 2006, thousands of Belarusian Christians of different denominations across the country joined members of New Life Church in a hunger strike which lasted 23 days and resulted in hospitalization of several people involved in the hunger strike.
It comes amid international concerns over the policies of President Aleksandr Lukashenko who critics say has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means.
Critics link the reported crackdown on New Life and other evangelical groups to government restrictions on freedom of religion as well as limitations on freedom of speech and the press and demonstrations. Lukashenko has denied wrongdoing.
Gambia Prosecution Delays Appeal Detained British Missionary
By Worthy News Africa Service with Worthy News' Stefan J. Bos
BANJUL, THE GAMBIA (Worthy News)-- The appeal of a frail British missionary detained in The Gambia on what Christians describe as "trumped up" charges of "sedition" has been delayed after prosecutors failed to attend a scheduled hearing and prison authorities did not produce him in court, Worthy News learned Wednesday, June 10.
David Fulton, 60, wanted to appeal against an additional conviction for forgery on May 25 but the proceedings were adjourned until Tuesday, June 16, his church said.
"We have news that the appearance on the 25th May did not take place. The new lady magistrate ruled that both the prosecution and Dave must be present at court on the 16th June," said the Westhoughton Pentecostal Church in the town of Bolton, United Kingdom.
Fulton and his wife Fiona, 46, had initially received sentences of one year's imprisonment with hard labor in December 2008, after pleading guilty to "sedition" on the advice of a lawyer, who claimed this would ensure more lenient sentences.
Shortly after that hearing, David Fulton was given an additional three years for pleading guilty to forgery, apparently in the hope of receiving the usual sentence of a fine.
SEDITION CONVICTIONS
The Fultons, who are held separately, are now appealing against their sedition convictions, and Mr. Fulton will also be contesting a new charge of impersonating an army official, confirmed Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a Christian rights group that has been closely monitoring the case.
Their supporters have linked the sedition charges to the missionaries' alleged involvement in criticizing the government of President Yahya Jammeh, who rights groups say believes in witchcraft and has led the tiny African nation with an iron fist.
Among the court's arguments was an apparent e-mail exchange in which David Fulton allegedly wrote: "This country is sinking fast into a morass of Islam, many people are safe and standing for Christ, but they are the minority".
Officials defended the punishments. "I found the offenses of the accused party to be very shocking and they have shown no respect for the country, the government and the president of the republic," said Judge Edrissa Mbai at the time. "I will send a clear message to the offenders."
The trial comes amid international concern about David and Fiona Fulton's health.
CSW said it has learned that David Fulton has recently recovered from an illness brought on by 102 days of solitary confinement in a cell with no lighting, and no access to exercise, at a high-security prison outside the capital Banjul . "His prescribed hard labour duties now include climbing coconut trees, stripping their bark and physically carrying fifty kilogram bundles."
The group said that Fiona Fulton has been put on "lavatory cleaning duties" and is "reported to be unwell emotionally and physically, and to have clearly lost weight."
CSW Advocacy Director Alexa Papadouris told Worthy News in a statement that his group was concerned about the missionaries' health. "It is vital that Mr. Fulton receives a fair hearing on June 16, that the Fultons' previous convictions for sedition are urgently reviewed, and that Mrs Fulton receives the medical attention she so clearly needs.
MISSIONARY ACTIVITIES
Dave Fulton and his wife Fiona from the town of Torquay in Devon, England, have been in The Gambia since 1996 carrying out missionary activities that included working among soldiers and terminally ill people, their church said.
"Dave is a chaplain to the Gambian service men and women and is in charge of the chaplaincy of the airport. In the last few years he has led many service personnel to the Lord. For the army he has trained seven chaplains, one for each barracks."
He recently also began preaching in outposts and villages only accessible by boat, a ten-day trip, every month. "But by Gods grace he sees many people receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour," said Westhoughton Pentecostal Church. "Fiona trained with others in the church to look after terminally ill people and spends time visiting women in their homes and in hospital."
David Fulton, 60, became a missionary after a controversial past that included leaving the British Army and becoming an armed robber. However Fulton said that while he was jailed,he "found God", and his wife, a prison visitor. Following his release, the Christian couple moved to The Gambia, where they eventually adopted a girl, Elizabeth, now two, who is currently staying with friends. Their other children, Iona, 20 and Luke, 17, are in the United Kingdom.
WITCH CRAFT
Working as Christian missionaries is a challenge in the predominantly Muslim nation where just three percent of the over one million people consider themselves Christians, with just over half of those being Roman Catholic, according to church estimates. Evangelicals are a tiny minority reportedly gathering in mainly small church congregations.
Believe in witchcraft has apparently also made it difficult for Christians and other minorities. Earlier this year, some 1,000 people accused of being witches in The Gambia were locked up in secret detention centers and forced to drink a dangerous hallucinogenic potion, according to human rights organization Amnesty International. At least two people died, Amnesty said.
The group reported that Gambian President Yahya Jammeh invited "witch doctors" from mainly neighboring Guinea -- to the West African nation following the death of his aunt.
Jammeh, a former soldier who has ruled The Gambia since leading a military coup in 1994, is reported to believe that witchcraft was involved in her death, according to Amnesty.
Egypt Again Detains Christian Brothers; Believer Kidnapped
CAIRO, EGYPT (Worthy News)-- Two Christian brothers were behind bars again Sunday,May 31, just weeks after being released from an Egyptian prison where they wereheld for a year on false charges of murdering a Muslim in Mallawi, Upper Egypt.
Refaat and Ibrahim Fawzy Abdo were re-arrested May 20, as part of an "intimidationcampaign" against Egyptian Christians, known as Copts, their lawyer and observers said.
The two were initially detained for allegedly killing a Muslim duringan attack on Abu Fana monastery in Egypt in May 2008, despite a lack of evidence,Christians said.
Advocacy groups reportedly fear the Interior Ministry will working with law enforcement officialsto keep them detained, force a confession and make the Copts look guilty in the Abu Fana attack.
SECURITY FORCES
Egyptian security forces can incarcerate people without reason according to provisions in criminallaw and Christians have expressed concerns the two brothers will be prosecuted outside the mainjudicial system.
News of the detention came after reports that 21-year-old Mina Basily was abducted from his home inthe town of Alexandria by four Muslim men on May 6. Middle East Christian Association said Muslims armed with swords, sticks and knives broke into the Basily family's home, assaulted Mina and forced him into a car parked outside.
Neighbours who witnessed the kidnapping were reportedly too fearful to intervene. Police allegedlyinitially refused to file an official report of kidnapping.
Local Muslims reportedly told police that Mina was kidnapped because of his relationship with a Muslim girl but the claims could not be independently confirmed. Rights investigators said the girl's family is hiding her from officials. Mina was reportedly handed over to the police but has been pressured to convert to Islam, Christians said.
Christian groups have expressed concerns over what they view as growing pressure on the country'sChristian minority.
Pakistan Taliban Threatens To Kill, Rape, Non Muslims
By Jawad Mazhar, Worthy News Special Correspondent reporting from Pakistan
LAHORE, PAKISTAN (Worthy News)-- A loose Pakistan-based umbrella group of factions linked to the militant Taliban organization has threatened to kill or rape all non-Muslims to enslave their children and take away their properties, unless they meet tough conditions.
In a letter, seen by Worthy News Monday, June 15, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) said non-Muslims should embrace Islam, or pay an Islamic tax known as 'Jaziva Tax' to Muslim rulers, or leave Pakistan forever, if they don't want to be harmed.
If the infidels rejected this suggestion they, would be killed and they would be responsible for it, wrote TTP leader Muslim Khan.
And, "The women of these disobedient infidels would be enslaved and raped according to [an Islamic ritual] Muta," he said.
Under Muta a Muslim man can, in theory, marry a woman for several hours and after having gotcha146 can divorce again by saying three times "I divorce you". The children conceived would be converted to Islam, enslaved and forced to work for TTP, the group added in the letter.
The letter was received May 27, by residents in the Jafferia Colony neighborhood of Lahore, the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab.
CHRISTIANS THREATENED
While TTP mentioned specifically Muslim Shiites for allegedly not observing Islam, the letter was also seen as a direct threat to Christians and other religious minorities in Lahore and elsewhere in the country, where militants have attempted to establish strict Islamic rule.
A 15-member committee representing the complex where the letter was received, including Shiites and Christians, approached local police to intervene, but there was apparently no increased security Monday, June 15.
Police said in a statement they had taken measures according to resources available and that special security was provided at houses of worship of religious minorities.
The latest letter came amid a government-led military crackdown on Islamic militants.
Just days earlier the TTP threatened Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other top Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) leaders, saying they would face dire consequences if a military offensive is not discontinued immediately.
In a letter to the PPP Information Secretary Fouzia Wahab, the TTP warned that the country's leadership would be targeted if the operation against them is not stopped, Pakistani media reported.
Yemen Christian Expatriates Review Security Following Killings
SANA'A, YEMEN (Worthy News)-- Christian expatriates in Yemen, including missionaries, were reviewing their security arrangements Tuesday, June 16, following confirmation of the murders of at least three kidnapped foreigners by suspected Islamic militants, a Christian group with close knowledge about the situation said.
Middle East Concern (MEC) also told Worthy News and its news partner BosNewsLife that South Koreans were worried they may be forced to leave the country which would have an impact on several Christian ministries.
They fear the murder of the South Korean might lead the Korean government to change the status of their current warning against travel to Yemen from 'advisory' to 'binding', MEC added.
This would effectively make [Yemen] a closed country for South Korean nationals. This currently [already] applies to travel to Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia.
There had been confusion about the fate of the nine foreigners kidnapped last week during a picnic in the northern Saada province. Bodies of three women were found Monday, June 15, in the Safra district, to the east of where the group was seized Friday, June 12, by suspected Islamic militants.
WOMEN IDENTIFIED
The women were identified as Rita Stewjab, 25, Amita Julie, 25, both of whom were German nurses, and 22-year-old Youvet Singhum, a South Korean teacher, according to Saba news agency. She was named in South Korea as Eom Young-Sun, 34.
However there were conflicting reports about the other missing hostages, including a German doctor and his wife, their three children, and a British engineer. One report said all nine hostages were dead, while another report quoted officials saying two children had been found alive.
Worldwide Services Foundation, a Dutch aid group helping with medical care in the province, said in a news release on its Web site that the missing hostages belonged to its team.
It said they had been working at a hospital in the north of Yemen, largely devoted to prenatal and maternity care. "The news of the killing of the three women will be a shock also for the local people, with whom a warm relationship exists that has been strengthened by the humanitarian efforts of so many years," Worldwide Services said.
In Seoul, Foreign Ministry spokesman Choe Jong-hyun said the government "cannot contain its anger and shock" at the slayings, The Associated Press news agency reported.
BLAMING MILITANT
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the kidnapping and killings, but Yemen officials blamed Houthi militants. The rebel group denied any involvement and accused Yemen authorities of trying to tarnish its image. Rebels loyal to a Zaidi Shi'ite cleric, Hussein al-Houthi, have been fighting government loyalists in Saada province since 2004.
In addition, there have been increasing protests in southern provinces of Yemen, some of which have become violent, MEC said. These are generally motivated by a feeling that the federal government in Sana'a is not giving some of them a fair share of national resources. In view of these developments many expatriate Christians working in Yemen have been reviewing their security arrangements.
Yemen, the ancestral homeland of the leader of the al-Qaida terrorist group, Osama bin Laden, had long been a haven for Islamic militants and was the scene of the October 2000 suicide bombing of the USS Cole that killed 17 American sailors.
The country is also the Arab world's poorest nation and one of its most unstable making it fertile territory for al-Qaida and other Islamic militants to set up camp, analysts say. The latest reported kidnappings of foreigners came as the government announced a crackdown on militants.
RING BROKEN
Yemeni authorities broke up an al-Qaida ring operating in two provinces, a security source told the Saba news agency this week.
The ring was operating in Sana'a and Mareb provinces, and was plotting fresh terrorist attacks, Saba news agency quoted the source -- who sought anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media -- as saying. The ring was responsible for previous attacks in Yemen, Saba said.
The operation came only days after the arrest of Hassan Hussein bin al-Wan, a Saudi national who arranged financing for al-Qaida in both Saudi Arabia and Yemen. He was caught in Mareb not far from Sana'a, the country's capital.
PRAYERS URGED
As the crackdown reportedly continued, MEC said Christians in Yemen urged prayers from fellow believers for the families and colleagues of [killed hostages] Anita, Rita and Young-Sun that they will know the comfort of Jesus.
In addition Yemeni Christians pray that the perpetrators will be convicted by the Spirit and drawn to the forgiveness, love and true life offered by Jesus and that All expatriate Christians in Yemen will know the Lord's guiding and protecting at this time," MEC explained.
They also hope South Korea will not force its nationals to leave that country, the group added.
Pakistan Christian Student "Too Ugly" To Study Science
MIANWALI, PAKISTAN (Worthy News)-- A talented Christian student has been denied admission to Science studies at a girls high school in Pakistan because the Muslim school principal regards her as "too ugly" to participate, her father said Wednesday, June 17.
Abdullah Masih said the female principal of the Government Girls Mian Shahbaz Sharif High School in the Pakistani city of Mianwali told his 14-year-old daughter Uzma Noreen: "Your ugly face is not fit for Science studies."
The principal, who is also a science teacher and known only as Sofia, declined to discuss the situation in details, but made clear she had not changed her opinion about the Christian sudent.
DAUGHTER DEVASTATED
Masih, 42, told Worthy News and its news partner BosNewsLife that his daughter was devastated. "Besides humiliating my daughter" the principal "also wrecked her educational career, he added in a telephone interview.
He said his daughter was punished for her Christian faith as she apparently scored most points of students participating in "the final examination of class eight" a key condition for Science studies in class nine.
"Her name was at the top of the list of students to whom admission in Science subjects was granted...Now she is rejected merely for being Christian," Masih claimed. "She was also told she is an ugly Christian girl and therefore her face does not appear to be fitting for Science studies
in higher classes."
This is no isolated incident, rights groups suggest. In recent months and years, several Christian students have reportedly been forced to leave educational institutions in Pakistan because of their faith.
Egypt Court Bans 'Christian' On Ex-Muslim's ID Card
By Worthy News Middle East Service with Worthy News' Stefan J. Bos
CAIRO, EGYPT (Worthy News)-- For the second time, an Egyptian court has rejected a Christian convert's request to change his religious affiliation on his identity card in a ruling described by criticsas "a severe blow" to freedom of religion of ex-Muslims.
Judge Hamdi Yaseen reportedly rejected the application of Maher Ahmed Al-Motasem BellahAl-Gohari to change his religious affiliation from Muslim to Christian, citing Islamicand public order concerns. Egyptian identity cards must report the faith of the holder.
Al-Gohari, whose last name has also been spelled as El-Gohary, and his daughter Dina 12, livein hiding and "in continuous fear" since "radical Islamists" incited mobs to kill Al-Goharifor his apostasy, Coptic Christians said.
"The disappointing verdict [Saturday, June 13] by the High Administrative Court in Cairo...dealt asevere blow to freedom of religion to Muslims who would like to come out of Islam and convertto Christianity," said United Copts of Great Britain in a statement seen by Worthy News WednesdayJune 17.
'RELIGIOUS SETBACK'
The group, which has close ties to Egyptian Christians, most of them known as Copts, said the rulingwas a setback "in a country that persistently and relentlessly claims to be secular and to apply 'civil Laws'."
I am disappointed with what happened and shocked with the decision, because I went to great lengths and through a great deal of hardship, Al-Gohari said in published remarks.
Judge Yaseen's verdict was based on the Islamic law, Shari'a, which prohibits conversion of Muslimsto any other religion and disruption to public order," according to trial observers.
Complicating the legal procedure was that Egypt's constitution has two "paradoxical statements", United Copts of Great Britain said. "Article two stipulates that Islamic Sharia, which prohibits conversions to any other religion is the main source of legislation..." But Article 46 of the constitution says "the state guarantees 'freedom of religion'," the group explained.
"ISLAMIST RADICALS"
"In todays court case, again, the converts to Christianity in Egypt have fallen victims to the Egyptian government appeasement to Islamist radicals to say the least," it added.
Al-Gohari's defense team said they would appeal the ruling. His case follows Mohammed Ahmed Hegazy the only other Muslim-born convert in Egypt known to have requested such the religious affiliation change on his identity card.
The Court of Administrative Justice in Cairo rejected Hegazy,'s request last year saying hehad not followed "proper legal" procedures and that he could not convert "to an older religion."
Hegazy had said he wanted to raise his future child as a Christian.
Christians comprise at least 10 percent of Egypt's mainly Muslim population of over 83 million, according to United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimates, although Coptic groups suggest that number may be higher.