IS bomber kills 46 inside Afghan mosque, challenges Taliban
Kabul, AfghanistanAP An Islamic State suicide bomber struck at a mosque packed with Shi’ite Muslim worshippers in northern Afghanistan on Friday, killing at least 46 people and wounding dozens in the latest security challenge to the Taliban as they transition from insurgency to governance. In its claim of responsibility, the region’s IS affiliate identified the […]
Human trafficking worsens in conflict zones as militants deploy slaves – UN
Thomson Reuters Foundation Human trafficking is becoming more “horrific” in conflict zones, where armed groups keep women as sex slaves and use child soldiers to spread fear, the United Nations said on Monday, warning of widespread impunity. From girls forced to wed to boys made to cook and clean, militants are using trafficking as a […]
Death toll “unimaginable” if bomb had exploded inside church, says Indonesian church leader
World Watch Monitor The leader of the Indonesian church most badly damaged by the suicide bombing attacks on Sunday, 13th May, has said he “can’t imagine” how much greater the damage could have been had the attacker detonated the bomb inside the church. Rev Yonathan Budiantoro of Surabaya Pentecostal Church, told the Christian charity Open Doors International that the morning service […]
Updated: Thirteen killed in attacks on churches in Indonesian city of Surabaya
Updated 10.30am, 14th May, 2018Thirteen people have died and more than 40 have been injured after suicide bombers attacked three churches in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second largest city. The almost simultaneous attacks, the deadliest in Indonesia since 2005, took place during Sunday morning services. The first explosion reportedly took place around 7.30am at the Santa Maria Tak […]
UNICEF calls for an end to “shocking” attacks against children
Children have been targeted in attacks at a “shocking scale” during 2017, according to the UN Children’s Fund which has renewed calls for all parties in conflicts to abide by international law and end attacks involving children. Manuel Fontaine, director of emergency programmes at UNICEF, said that as attacks against children continue “year after year”, the […]