The Voice of the suffering and persecuted​

When the drones hit Lviv on the morning of September 19th, a warehouse containing donations to the charity Caritas-Spes was destroyed.  “All the relief goods stored there should have gone to Kharkiv and Pavlograd in the following days,” the bishop told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

“They vandalized and destroyed everything, and then they went away, And when the fire was put out, they came back again, to make sure that the church was destroyed.”

The Christian community in Iraq has once again been brought to its knees by a tragedy; fire at a Christian wedding in Qaraqosh, Iraq, left more than 100 people dead and 150  injured.

A terrorist group that claims allegiance to ISIS arrived in Naquitengue in the early afternoon and summoned everyone in the village. They then separated the Christians from the Muslims, based on names and ethnicity.

“We are still doing everything possible to help our faithful, to provide them with essential services. But we cannot replace the government. There is no light at the end of the tunnel, and we do not see a short-term solution. Without support, we cannot convince them to stay.”

“Because I have a scholarship to study, I can stay in Iraq, which I want to do. I want my future to be in Iraq, and I want to help build my country’s future, too,”

With war, violence, and extreme poverty in countries like Ukraine, Nigeria, Myanmar, and Pakistan, as well as in other regions of the Middle East and Africa, ACN wishes to entrust to God, through the powerful intercession of His Mother, all the places and people who cannot live in peace.

“Every human being is related to others, and the Pope has used the word “communion” repeatedly. This communion is more than just an act; it is really a way of being. And whenever something touches a part of the Church, it touches all of us.”

Bishop Kundi said: “The attackers were aiming to kidnap the parish priest. When they failed in their attempt to enter the father’s house, they set it on fire. The two priests were able to escape but, terribly, the seminarian was burned inside.”

“They are both fine, alive, and healthy, despite the trauma endured at the hands of their captors.”