10 Prayer Points for Iraq - Hope for the Middle East

Nothing stops the church. Not war, not persecution. Not even the Covid-19 pandemic. But none of this is possible without prayer or the support of the worldwide Christian family. These are 10 prayer points to help you understand and pray for Iraq.

1  Please continue your prayer for protection and safety of the civilian families on Iraqi-Turkish borders. The military ground operations of Turkey have continued and extended to the neighboring villages; the Turkish army is opening fire on the villages causing panic and fear among civilians. Form the middle of June 2020 the Turkish army has been targeting PKK, the Kurdish workers’ party, who are located in the mountain areas in Iraq’s northern border region.

2  Pray for the Iraqi young graduates. Each year groups of graduates volunteer to work as free lecturers in school, in the hope that they will be hired as official government employees in the future. Many of them faced disappointment when the ministry of education held on to them but then didn\'t hire them. Please pray for the young volunteers to be able to find a job to meet their daily needs.

3 The lack of legal punishment for criminals who commit honour crimes is a factor contributing to the increase of violence and murders against women and children. Pray to end the honour crimes and pray for a society free of violations.

4  Pray for wisdom for political leaders in Iraq. That they may lead the country to peace and far from corruption. Iraq is going through an economic and political crisis. The country also experiences a deterioration of security because of the presence of militias supported by Iran. Their political and military interference and their presence poses a danger to the civilians.

5 Fear spread among the Iraqi people after a crisis development between the US government and Iran-supported militias in Iraq. The militias targeted the US embassy in Baghdad by missile strikes. US government threatens to close its embassy in Baghdad if the Iraqi government fails to act against the militia groups. This might also limit help from abroad. Please pray for peace and stability for the people in Iraq.

6  Pray for the families of 2 women and 5 children who died when a missile hit their home in Baghdad. Pray that conflict on Iraqi soil will end.

7 Pray for protection and stability for the Christians in the Nineveh plain. In 2014 Christians in Iraq were the main target of the so-called Islamic state. They were expelled and displaced, their house and villages were destroyed and many of them left the country. The number of Christians decreased dramatically. While thousands of them are now back, the security situation remains unstable. Pray for peace.

8  Due to the rapid spread of COVID-19 hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq got infected. Pray for medical staff. There is a lack of medical equipment. Ask the lord for their protection and ask Him to strengthen them to continue to serve.

9  Please continue to pray for the families of government employees in the Kurdish region of Iraq. Due to an economic and political disagreement between the central government of Iraq and Kurdish authorities, they haven’t received their salaries from the beginning of 2020. Ask the Lord for wisdom for the leaders on both sides to solve the problem that affects so many people economically.

10  Ask for the Lord’s mercy for people who are passing through a very difficult financial time. Before the pandemic in Iraq, poverty was already very high. During the lockdown, because of COVID-19, people were forced to stay home. Many people lost their job. The economic situation is worsening each day. This comes on top of the security issues and related fears that people are already dealing with.