Yesterday (26 November) was a day of celebration in the United States: it was Thanksgiving, when most families celebrate with a roast turkey dinner. Thanksgiving also came just days before President Barack Obama attends a global climate change conference in Paris (see this week’s Prayer Alert Europe article). There is an interesting White House tradition that has captured the imagination of the public in recent years, of ‘pardoning’ the White House turkeys. Myth says that President Lincoln's 1863 clemency to a turkey, recorded in an 1865 dispatch by White House reporter Noah Brooks, was the origin for the pardoning ceremony. The president pardoned a couple of turkeys again on Wednesday this year; however, the birds took a carbon-intensive cross-country flight from San Francisco International Airport to meet the President, who will depart from the same airport on Sunday to attend the Paris global climate conference and discuss ways to reduce carbon emissions.

The militant Islamist group al-Shabaab has publicly declared that it 'wants Somalia free of any Christians'. Those who are suspected of being Christians are frequently killed on the spot. Christians must keep their faith hidden. Believers are isolated, and meet in small groups. They cannot own Bibles, as this could put them in danger. Islam is enshrined as the state religion in the nation's constitution, making apostasy illegal, and those who attack Christians do so with impunity. A believer says, ‘We are experiencing horrible things here every day. It appears that I live in hell on earth. I wish I could just stand inside a church and cry out in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.’ The government is barely functional and the nation is largely governed by a tribal system. Somalia has become a safe haven for Islamic radicalism. But one Somali Christian has regular contact with camel-herders and has given them a radio tuned to a Christian station.

The head of the Syriac Catholic Church has accused Western governments of betraying Christians in the Middle East, and said it was ‘a big lie’ to suggest Islamic State could be defeated with airstrikes. Syriac Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan said, ‘All Eastern patriarchs, myself included, have spoken out clearly to the West from the very beginning: be careful, the situation in Syria is not like Egypt, Tunisia or Libya. It’s much more complex, and conflict here will create chaos and civil war. They disagreed, saying the Assad regime will fall soon. That hasn’t happened and five years later, innocent people, especially Christians, have no support. The West has betrayed us.’ The West is now stepping up attacks after terrorists killed 130 in Paris and dozens in Beirut, but the patriarch said airstrikes were ineffective at targeting IS because its religiously-indoctrinated operatives are well financed and well armed, and have infiltrated local populations.

Gunmen shouting Islamic slogans attacked the Radisson Blue Hotel, frequented by foreigners, early last Friday. After Malian commandos stormed the hotel, a large number of hostages were freed. Although it is suspected that the attack was sparked by terror attacks on Paris last week, it is important to keep in mind that the attack happened within the context of insecurity that has been lingering since the 2013 Islamic rebellion. A fragile peace accord reached in June 2015 has so far not succeeded in brokering lasting stability. An Open Doors worker said, ‘Some of the Christians who were forced to flee the North during the 2013 rebellion have ventured back, but have found it very hard to cope with the destruction of their properties and the ongoing anxiety. However, as this attack clearly shows, Christians in the South also continue to face insecurity.’