Bishop Concerned About Increasing Threats Against Former Muslims 
By Wolfgang Polzer
Special to ASSIST News ServiceBERLIN/STUTTGART (ANS) – Muslim converts fear for their lives – not only in predominantly Muslim countries but also in Germany.
Muslim converts fear for their lives – not only in predominantly Muslim countries but also in Germany.The leader of the main line Protestant […]

WASHINGTON - The U.S. military says all 20,000 additional combat troops President Bush ordered to Iraq in January have now arrived, with the last unit set to be fully operational in a couple of weeks. Pentagon officials say the increased tempo of U.S. military operations in Iraq is responsible for some progress toward establishing security […]

WHITE HOUSE - President Bush is urging the U.S. Congress to support a massive expansion of his program to help AIDS patients in the developing world.
In 2003, President Bush announced plans to provide billions of dollars to fight AIDS in 15 countries - primarily in Africa.
That program, which focuses on prevention, treatment, and support services, […]

BEIJING - China has delivered a death sentence to the former head of its food and drug administration, for taking bribes to approve untested medicines. The court case was heard as China faces growing complaints about unsafe drugs and food.
A Beijing court sentenced Zheng Xiaoyu to death for taking bribes worth over $830,000 while he […]

UNITED NATIONS - The U.N. Security Council is to vote Wednesday to create an international tribunal to try suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. 
The Security Council president for May, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, emerged from closed-door consultations Tuesday to announce that a landmark vote on the Hariri tribunal is set.
“It […]

WASHINGTON - A Congressional hearing on Russia last Thursday reverberated with concerns over the deteriorating state of democracy in the world’s largest country. Meanwhile, the U.S. government says it will continue cooperating with the Kremlin wherever possible, but, at the same time, will continue to criticize Russia and defend U.S. principles, when necessary. 
Participants in a […]

IRBIL, IRAQ - Rare talks between Iran and the United States have concluded in Baghdad, where U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker said officials on both sides affirmed they share common policies aimed at a future stable and democratic Iraq, but he also insisted Iran stop supporting insurgent militias.  As the talks concluded, a bomb blast in […]

JERUSALEM - Israel’s Labor Party has voted out its current leader, Amir Peretz, who serves as Israel’s defense minister in the coalition government. The Labor Party primary vote could eventually bring down the government of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.In a decisive vote to change its current leadership, Labor members gave former Prime Minister Ehud Barak […]

MOSUL - Iraq’s northern city Mosul, in Ninewa province, is a sprawling tangle of historic neighborhoods that straddle the Tigris river. With a mixed population of Sunni Arabs, Kurds and other minority groups, Iraq’s third largest city is typical of many Iraqi towns that have see-sawed between periods of violence and relative calm since the […]

OGONILAND, NIGERIA - In Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta, one area, Ogoniland in Rivers State, resists oil production. Residents there say oil companies refuse to meet their demands to redistribute wealth and protect the environment.
Young men walking along roads in Ogoniland stare menacingly at those they consider outsiders, thinking they may be from oil companies.
Dutch-based oil […]

By Dan Wooding
Founder of ASSIST MinistriesCAIRO, EGYPT (ANS) – A global coalition of Coptic Christians is calling on governments of the world to demand that Egypt stop religious persecution of Coptic Christians and guarantee religious freedom and justice for all citizens.
A global coalition of Coptic Christians is calling on governments of the world to demand […]

PENTAGON - The U.S. Defense Department has issued its annual report on China’s military capability, citing continuing efforts to project Chinese power beyond its immediate region and to develop high-technology systems that can challenge the best in the world. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says some of China’s efforts cause him concern.
The report says “China […]

CAIRO - Shipments of foreign military aid have begun arriving in Lebanon as a tense standoff continues at a Palestinian refugee camp in the north. A ceasefire has been in effect for three days, but government troops and Islamic militants appear to be preparing for renewed fighting. 
Several planeloads of ammunition and other military supplies landed […]

By Jeremy Reynalds
Correspondent for ASSIST News ServiceSURREY, ENGLAND (ANS) – Burma Army troops are continuing their offensive against Karen civilians, one of the country’s ethnic minorities.
Burma Army troops are continuing their offensive against Karen civilians, one of the country’s ethnic minorities.
The troops have reportedly shot dead a deaf man, raped and murdered a woman, taken […]

By Michael Ireland
Chief Correspondent, ASSIST News Service 
AMMAN, JORDAN (ANS) – Since the allies’ war against Iraq began, neighboring Jordan has received 750,000 refugees. Nobody knows how many of these are Assyrians. Various organizations estimate the number of Assyrians refugees from 30,000 to 150,000 people.
Months after the American and allies’ invasion of Iraq, a systematic persecution […]

CAPITOL HILL - The U.S. Congress has approved legislation supporting military operations in Iraq, with majority Democrats calling it the best achievable at this time, and Republicans claiming victory in forcing Democrats to drop a withdrawal timetable. Approval by the House of Representatives, by a vote of 280 to 142, sent the measure to the Senate […]

WASHINGTON - President Bush says he will seek stronger sanctions on Iran, following a new U.N. report that accuses Tehran of accelerating its nuclear-enrichment program.
The president makes clear Iran’s defiance of international demands will not be tolerated.
“My view is that we need to strengthen our sanctions regime,” he said.
Mr. Bush says Secretary of State Condoleezza […]

JERUSALEM - Israeli security forces arrested more than 30 leading members of Hamas, Thursday, in the occupied West Bank - part of a continuing crackdown against Hamas for launching rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip.
The most prominent Hamas leader arrested is Nasser Shaer, the education minister in the Hamas-dominated Palestinian unity government. Israeli forces […]

STATE DEPARTMENT - The United States says Iran will face additional international pressure following release of an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report that Tehran has expanded its uranium-enrichment activities.  Consultations about further U.N. sanctions against Iran are expected to begin soon.
Officials in Washington are still studying the IAEA report, but say it is clear […]

WHITE HOUSE - President Bush says al-Qaida terrorist leaders tried to turn Iraq into a launch pad for attacks on the United States. Mr. Bush outlined details of the plan in a speech Wednesday at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.
The president says there is hard evidence that al-Qaida operatives in Iraq were told in 2005 […]

WASHINGTON - The State Department says the Lebanese government has asked the United States for additional military aid amid the fighting between its forces and Islamic militants near the northern port city of Tripoli. U.S. security aid to Lebanon has increased sharply in recent years.
Officials here won’t say how much, or what kind of new […]

LOS ANGELES - Memorial Day (May 28th) is a US holiday that honors members of the armed forces who have died in the service of their country.  The three-day Memorial Day weekend also marks the unofficial start of summer, with picnics and family events.  But in Washington D.C., a concert Sunday evening will remind the […]

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration is voicing support for Lebanese troops battling Islamic militants at a Palestinian refugee camp.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack praised Lebanon’s armed forces, which he said are performing well under difficult circumstances. “The Lebanese armed forces are reacting admirably. I know it is a difficult situation anytime you have these terrorist, […]

CAPITOL HILL - President Bush is accusing Democrats in Congress of playing politics as they prepare to take a no-confidence vote this week on Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez. Controversy involving Gonzalez and his handling of the dismissals of eight U.S. prosecutors, will also be in the spotlight when one of his former aides testifies before […]

CAIRO - Fighting between the Lebanese army and Islamic extremists has been raging around a Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon. The death toll has climbed to more than 50 since the gunbattles started Sunday. 
The sound of intense automatic gunfire and exploding artillery shells could be heard from several kilometers away as renewed fighting erupted […]