Update: Arrest made in attack on Christian family

04 November 2009 0 minutes read

Yaakov "Jack" Teitel
Photo from Shin Bet

A suspect has finally been arrested for the March 2008 bomb attack in the Jewish settlement town of Ariel that severely injured Ami Ortiz, the teenage son of a Messianic pastor (read the story). Yaakov "Jack" Teitel (37), an American-born man reportedly behind a number of other deadly terror attacks over the past decade, was arrested on October 7. Leah Ortiz, Ami's mother, told the Jerusalem Post, "We are relieved that a suspect has been arrested for the attempted murder which took place in our home a year and a half ago. As a family the past year and a half has been a struggle in every way."

Please pray for Ami as he continues to heal from the brutal bomb attack. For more information on the opposition facing Christians in Palestine, click here.

Palestine

Palestine Information
Population
Gaza - 2,098,389 (2023 est.)
West Bank - 3,176,549 (2023 est.)

Religion (%)
Gaza - Muslim (98-99), Christian and other (1-2),
West Bank - Muslim (80-85), Jewish (12-14), Christian (1-2.5), other (<1)

Leadership
President Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank
Hamas in the Gaza Strip

Statistics: CIA World Factbook
Pray for Palestine
Pray not only for the peace of the land, but also for both Jewish Israelis and Palestinian Arabs to meet the Prince of Peace, as it is through Him alone that any meaningful reconciliation will come.

Pray Palestinian Christians who remain will stay strong in both their Christian faith and in their commitment to live out the gospel in very difficult conditions.

Palestine News

Christian Doctor Brutally Attacked

Click to watch an interview with Dr. Salamah Qumsieh.
Photo: YouTube / Samir A. Zedan (screenshot)

Dr. Salamah Qumsieh is an obstetric surgeon and head of the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department at Bethlehem's Holy Family Hospital. On February 12th, he was attacked in broad daylight by Khader Odeh, a well-known Islamic militant. Khader attempted to sever the doctor's hands and violently crush his head. Following the assault, surgeons spent ten hours reconnecting his veins and tendons. While his hands were saved, Dr. Salamah is not expected to be able to practice medicine again due to the severity of his injuries.

Read more...
Gunmen's Attempts to Intimidate

Jifna, Palestine
Photo: Wikipedia / Jacob

Christians in Palestine request prayer following the attempts of armed militia in Jifna, near Ramallah, to intimidate them through acts of violence.

On April 25th, a Christian woman was involved in a minor car accident, which she reported to police, filing a complaint against the driver of the other vehicle. That driver, however, was the son of a prominent member of Fatah, the ruling party in the West Bank. Later that day, approximately 30 gunmen entered the Christian community, firing guns in the air, throwing gasoline bombs, and demanding that the complaint be withdrawn. No one was injured, though there was property damage in the vicinity of the attack which included some vehicles.

Read more...
New Believer's Son Recovers from Coma

A hillside view of the West Bank

The Voice of the Martyrs is supporting Christian workers who are ministering to many new believers in the West Bank, an area where tensions remain high between militant Muslims and Christians. One of the new believers being reached is a young mother, "Mary," who not only has an eagerness to learn more about the Bible, she's enthusiastically sharing her new-found faith with family members.

Recently, the woman's young child fell out of a window -- more than 36 feet from ground level -- resulting in the hospitalization of her toddler who remained in a coma for two-and-a-half weeks. Although distressed during the ordeal, Mary willingly shared her Christian faith with doctors while her son was in the hospital, and also seized the opportunity to pray for the other sick children. Throughout this time, she held steadfastly onto her faith in God and, miraculously, her son eventually recovered.

Please join us in praying that Mary's faith will grow even stronger, and that her family and those who are being touched by her Christian witness will come to the saving knowledge of Jesus.

Read more...
IS Militants Warn, ''Leave or Risk Being Killed''

Pray for the safety of Christians in the Holy Land.

Leaflets distributed recently in East Jerusalem are warning Christians to leave the city before the end of Ramadan on July 18th or risk being killed. The leaflets are attributed to a group its own members refer to as the "Islamic State in Palestine."

While Muslim and Christian religious leaders have been quick to condemn the leaflets, alarmed Christians residing in Jerusalem have requested prayer. As recently reported in one of our previously posted prayer alerts, there have been a number of recent incidents targeting Christians in Jerusalem's Old City, as well as reports of mounting pressure on Palestinian Christians amid fears of local Muslims being radicalized. To review this earlier report, please click here.

Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Jerusalem who are increasingly concerned over the threats made by militants against their Christian community. Ask God to grant them a greater awareness of His reassuring presence, peace, guidance and protection (Psalm 122:6-8). And for those who are in opposition of these faithful followers of Christ, pray that the reverential fear of our Lord will come upon them so they may repent and wholeheartedly turn to Him as their blessed Saviour!

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