July 31, 2000
Baptists called to pray for peace in Indonesia
___By Erin Curry
___SBC International Mission Board
___JAKARTA, Indonesia (BP) --Southern Baptists have been called to urgent prayer for fellow Christians suffering from Muslim extremist attacks in the Moluccas islands of Indonesia.
___More than 4,000 people--most of them Christians--have died in the fighting that broke out in January 1999 after a dispute between a Christian bus driver and a Muslim passenger.
___A missionary who cannot be identified for security reasons has urged Southern Baptists to pray urgently for peace in the islands, for believers experiencing persecution and that the turmoil will create opportunities for spreading the gospel.
___A minority of Muslims has declared a "jihad," or holy war, against all Christians in the islands and is receiving support from Muslim radicals elsewhere.
___With 85 percent of its 210 million people following Islam, Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim country, though the population of the Moluccas is almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians.
___Thousands of trained jihad warriors have arrived in the Moluccas from Java. Christians, unable to match the firepower of the warriors, are fleeing to refugee camps, where they are being encircled by the radicals.
___Jihad warriors attack ships and trucks attempting to supply more than 34,000 refugees in the camps.
___A ferry carrying more than 500 refugees fleeing the violence sank June 29 after departing from Halmahera island, scene of some of the worst attacks. At least 100 Baptists were among the victims.
___The government in Jakarta initially refused to allow intervention from the United Nations or any other outside source. International Red Cross efforts were actively opposed by military units.
___On July 17, however--a day after television reports showed the Indonesian army assisting Muslims in an attack against Christians--Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid said some international assistance may be required to end the violence.
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