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Ukraine: Emergency humanitarian response underway as thousands flee flooding from burst dam

Iraq: Six yazidi girls rescued from IS captivity

Six Yazidi women were rescued from Islamic State (IS) captivity in Syria and flown back to Erbil, Kurdistan, where they were reunited with their families with the help of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

The women were children and teenagers when they were abducted in 2014 after IS took control of large swathes of land in East and Northeast Iraq, including the Yazidi city of Sinjar. The terrorists killed an estimated 5,000 Yazidi civilians for refusing to convert to Islam; between 400,000 and 500,000 Yazidis were displaced, and 6,000-7,000, predominantly women and children, were taken as slaves. Many of them were sold and transferred to Syria, and it is estimated that over 2,000 Yazidi women are still missing.

In a statement issued following the rescue of the six women, Yazidi Nobel Prize Laureate Nadia Murad said: "Rescuing trafficked and enslaved Yazidi women and children is an ongoing humanitarian campaign and the reunification of these six women with their families, after nearly nine years, gives us hope that more can be found. We will continue to search for the remaining women and children who we know are still missing. In this endeavour, we are asking for help with international partners."

Christian Solidarity Worldwide founder president Mervyn Thomas said: "CSW is pleased to report the release of these six women from captivity. Our thoughts and prayers are with them as they recover from the trauma they have been through. We continue to call on the international community to step up efforts to secure the release of all Yazidis who remain in captivity, and to ensure that those responsible for atrocity crimes are brought to justice.

Call for justice for Nigeria church massacre victims presented at 10 Downing Street

On the first anniversary of the Pentecost Sunday church massacre in Owo, Nigeria, Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) handed in a petition at 10 Downing Street.

Received by Fiona Bruce MP, the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, the appeal calls on the UK Government to demand the arrest and imprisonment of terrorists.

Nigerian authorities still have not charged anybody in connection with the atrocity on 5th June 2022 when extremists opened fire and detonated explosives during Mass at St Francis Xavier’s Church, killing 41 people and injuring more than 80.

The petition also requests the UK Government call on their Nigerian counterparts to serve justice for the victims of countless other atrocities committed against Christians, such as killings, abductions and the destruction of livelihoods.

As thousands flee to Odesa to avoid flooding, additional emergency accommodation and humanitarian aid is urgently being distributed by aid agency, Depaul Ukraine in the city. It follows the news earlier, a dam in the Russianoccupied Ukrainian region of Kherson was breached.

The charity, which has worked in the country since 2007, will open additional emergency accommodation in Odesa for households displaced by the floods.

People who have lost their homes will immediately be able to access humanitarian aid including food and hygiene items and apply for cash transfers to cover their basic needs.

Displaced families will also be able to access Depaul Ukraine's support across the country, including Zaporizhzhya, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Kyiv. The charity will also set up a fund for repairs to homes in Kherson damaged by the flood when people are able to return.

CEO of Depaul Ukraine Father Vitaliy said: "Our team Odesa has been inundated with calls from people urgently needing accommodation. Since the first day of the war, Depaul Ukraine has worked day-in-day-out to help displaced people with emergency shelter, food and medical supplies - this will be no different."

Group CEO of Depaul International, Matthew Carter, said: "The international community must act swiftly and respond to this humanitarian disaster. Displacement and homelessness is already a daily reality for Ukrainians, and many of those impacted by this latest crisis will have already lost so much. As ever, Depaul Ukraine has immediately responded by adapting services in Odesa and across Ukraine to support these people for the days, weeks and months ahead."

Human rights champions and Nigeria experts Baroness Caroline Cox and Lord David Alton of Liverpool participated in the petition submission. Lord Alton stressed the importance of “reminding the world about the price that people are paying for their faith”.

Father Matthew Madewa, the parish priest at St Francis Xavier’s until 2015, was also present. He feels optimistic about the recent change of government in Nigeria. He hopes President Bola Tinubu will do more to deliver justice and provide security to Christians than his predecessor had done.

Father Michael Abugan, the current parish priest, is also hopeful about the new administration. He believes “the new president will do his best to bring different ethnic groups and religions together”.