This week, will we be keeping the African country of Eritrea in our prayers.

In 2014, the UN passed a resolution calling for a Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the human rights situation in Eritrea. Only a handful of countries, with some of the worst human rights situations in the world, have been the focus of such an Inquiry – it’s one of the most serious steps the UN can take to hold a country to account. The human rights crisis has led to an unprecedented exodus, with Eritreans of all ages fleeing the country in record numbers.

This week please:

• Thank God for the UN’s unprecedented step of setting up a Commission of Inquiry into the human rights situation in Eritrea and pray for their ongoing work;
• Pray that the Commission would receive detailed and credible testimonies from those who have suffered at the hands of the Eritrean regime, and that its final report would result in decisive international action to hold Eritrea’s leaders to account;
• Ask God to protect all those who submit their testimonies to the Commission. Pray particularly for protection for family members still living in Eritrea;
• Give thanks for CSW’s Africa and Middle East team, which has been campaigning tirelessly for religious freedom in Eritrea over many years;
• Pray for protection and strength for the 2,000-3,000 Christians, and others, imprisoned for years without charge or trial;
• Pray against attempts by Western governments to play down repression in Eritrea, in order to justify returning asylum seekers to that country;
• Ask our Almighty God to move in power to bring freedom to the people of Eritrea.