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On the morning of June 5, Pastor Hua Huiqi was arrested by police officers from Shanxi province and Beijing when he was transferring trains at the Taiyuan Railroad Station in Shanxi, according to a June 9 report from ChinaAid. Hua was taken to a hotel and severely beaten by officials. One of the officials reportedly said to him: "I'm going to strangle you and I'd like to see whether you can still preach the Gospel.... Our Domestic Security Protection Squad is specially set up here to suppress you Jesus believers." The officials also threatened to arrest both him and his wife. He was released on June 7 and, at last report, was being treated for his injuries at his home in Beijing.
Pray for healing for Pastor Hua. Pray for protection for him and his family. Pray that his attackers will turn to faith in Christ and become a demonstration of God's love and mercy to others (1 Timothy 1:16).
Learn more about how Christians are persecuted in China.
Sajida Masih, the mother of a 12-year-old Christian girl who was kidnapped in the village of Hanif Kot, Gujranwala district, Pakistan and forced to marry a 37-year-old Muslim man, is embroiled in a legal battle to recover her daughter, according to a June 4 report from Compass Direct. On February 23, Muhammad Imran abducted Huma Masih after threatening to kill her, her aunt and her parents. Sajida was ridiculed by police when she sought their help. After three days, officers finally filed the report but listed Huma's age as 16, the legal age for girls in Pakistan to marry. Imran subsequently demanded nullification of the report, claiming Huma converted to Islam and married him of her own will. He also submitted a fake birth certificate which listed her age as 18. Local Muslims have since tried to extort money and labour from Sajida in exchange for information on Huma's whereabouts. At last report, a hearing was scheduled for June 11.
Refaat and Ibrahim Fawzy Abdo, Christian brothers who were falsely accused of murdering a Muslim in Mallawi, Upper Egypt in May 2008 (