[Today’s Prayer] Three college students from Palestine were shot during the U.S. Thanksgiving

(omitted)

According to US NBC and police announcements on the 26th (local time), three Palestinian college students were shot by a gunman in an attack near the University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont, at around 6:25 pm on the 25th.

Local police said that two of them are in non-life-threatening condition despite gunshot wounds, but the other is in critical condition.

Police are tracking the suspect, believed to be a white male.

The three victims, all 20-year-old college students, were found to have encountered the suspect while going to the home of a relative of one of the victims for Thanksgiving.

Vermont, located in the northeastern coast of the United States, borders Quebec, Canada, and is known to have a relatively low crime rate in the United States. More than 90% of the resident population is made up of caucasians.

Local police said, "The suspect fired four shots and is currently believed to be on the run. Two of the victims were shot in the torso and one was shot in the lower body."

All three victims are from Palestine, two of them are U.S. citizens and the other is a legal resident, police said.

It was discovered that they were wearing keffiyehs, traditional Palestinian scarves with a black and white checkered pattern, at the time of the attack.

Local police are considering the possibility that this incident was a hate crime and have requested cooperation from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Meanwhile, the American-Arab Non-Discrimination Committee (ADC), a Muslim human rights organization in the United States, issued a statement on this day and said that the three victims were Hisham Awartani, a student at Brown University, Kinnan Abdalhamid, a student at Haverford College, and Tahseen Ahmed, a student at Trinity College.

The group said, "After reviewing the information available to date, there is reason to believe that this shooting occurred simply because the victims were Arab," and added, "The suspect opened fire after shouting and threatening the victims, who were speaking in Arabic."

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders also issued a statement on the same day, saying, "The shocking and very sad incident of three young men of Palestinian origin has taken place here in Burlington," and "Hate has no place here or anywhere else. I urge for a thorough investigation to be conducted,” he said.

Source: Yonhap News

Cast all your anxieties on the Lord, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:7-8)

Lord, the one and only judge, the shooting of Palestinian students in the United States is increasingly igniting global strife and conflict.

As the war between Israel and Hamas intensifies and as we see the conflict between nations around the world following the growing rage towards one another, we realize that this is a spiritual problem that cannot be solved with worldly methods.

Lord, would you comfort the Palestinian people who have lost family and friends around the world due to war and conflict, and guide them to the peace of Jesus, their eternal friend.

Just as you sent the Son of God to reconcile sinners to God, may the divided nations of this land that have turned their backs to one another be united through the cross of Jesus and become a passage of joy.

Therefore, may you help the Palestinian people, who are ostracized by all nations and living like wild donkeys, and heal their wounds and pains with the gospel that they may become a nation that boldly advances for the kingdom and word of God.

The devil, like a roaring lion, covets and is defeating God's people, but may the Holy Spirit come and strengthen their faith and allow for the the power of the gospel to be proclaimed!

Would you also restore the spirituality of high priests in the American church and help us to rise up together alongside Palestine and all nations to quickly prepare the way of our Lord’s return!