[Today's Prayer] 45,000 more Rohingya refugees displaced in western Myanmar as civil war rages on
The number of Rohingya refugees in Myanmar is rising sharply as the country's civil war rages on, according to a new report.
The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said Friday that some 45,000 Rohingya have fled to the Bangladesh border in recent days as fighting between Myanmar's military and rebels intensifies in the country's western state of Rakhine, according to AFP.
OHCHR spokesperson Elizabeth Trossel said that Rakhine State, the site of fighting between the Myanmar army and the ethnic armed group Arakan Army (AA), has seen a shocking spate of violence in recent weeks, including air strikes, arson and shootings.
He noted that instances of abuse and attacks on Rohingya civilians by the AA as well as the Myanmar military are emerging.
"Civilians must be protected without any discrimination based on their identity," OHCHR said, calling for an immediate cessation of violence.
The European Union, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, Switzerland, and others expressed concern about the spread of civilian casualties in Myanmar in a joint statement the previous day.
(Omitted)
The Rohingya are a Muslim minority in Buddhist-majority Myanmar that has long been persecuted.
In 2017, approximately 750,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh to escape the Myanmar military's crackdown.
More than one million Rohingya are reportedly currently living in refugee camps in Bangladesh.
Source: Yonhap News
And this is the testimony, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life, and he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. (1 John 5:11-12)
Loving Heavenly Father,
Please have compassion on the Rohingya refugees who are traveling without a country of origin in the midst of Myanmar's civil war.
As fighting between Myanmar's military and insurgents intensifies, we recently heard the sad news that more than 45,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh, unable to withstand government persecution and attacks.
May the gospel of life be quickly witnessed to the Rohingya people, who live as a Muslim minority in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, unknown to the world, insecure and afraid, on the edge of death!
We trust that You, who overcame all shame and persecution by dying on the cross, will wipe away every tear and comfort the Rohingya people.
grant that those who are forced to flee their homeland without a nationality may hear the gospel and proclaim true freedom in Jesus Christ.
We believe that when the confession, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God," bursts from their lips, all power of death will be broken.
Let them rise up as missionary disciples who will witness the gospel of the kingdom of heaven to the ends of the earth with the spirituality of missionaries, not refugees!
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