Author: LoveWorld UK

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed gave his condolences to the family and friends of the 157 people killed when an Ethiopian Airlines passenger jet bound for Nairobi crashed minutes after take-off on Sunday Speaking in a televised address, Ahmed described the incident as “shocking and tragic” and said the causes of the accident would be investigated and made public. Flight ET 302, registration number ET-AVJ, crashed 38 miles southeast of the capital Addis Ababa, with 149 passengers and eight crew aboard, the airline said.

Just one in three entrepreneurs in the UK is female and closing the gender gap could generate an extra £250bn for the economy, a government review has found. The disparity in women-run firms represents more than a million “missing businesses”, according to the Treasury-commissioned report. It also found businesses run by women are on average half the size of male-led firms and far less likely to scale up to a £1m turnover. In response to the review, carried out by Alison Rose, deputy chief executive of NatWest, banks and other lenders are being encouraged to publish what proportion of investment…

The U.S. ambassador for religious freedom, Sam Brownback, on Friday called on Beijing to end religious persecution in China, while requesting a visit to the country’s mass internment camps in the western region of Xinjiang. In a strongly worded speech during a visit to Hong Kong, Brownback said Beijing was “on the wrong side of history” and needed to “hear the cries of its own people for religious freedom”

A Christian woman cleared of blasphemy in Pakistan is said to be “very unwell” and is reportedly being denied medical care in protective custody. Asia Bibi, who was moved to a safe house in Karachi after her acquittal was upheld by the country’s Supreme Court last month, is reportedly experiencing very low blood pressure. A source told reporters: “Everyone is very worried. She won her appeal and was supposed to be out of Pakistan by now. Let’s continue to pray for fellow Christians around the world that they are protected from wicked and unreasonable men and they continually walk in…

In UK political news, Britain may have to delay its departure from the European Union if Parliament do not agree the government’s proposed Brexit deal in a vote next week, Chancellor Philip Hammond said. Britain is due to leave the EU in 22 days, but if Mp’s reject the deal this will put in doubt how, when or possibly even if Britain’s biggest foreign and trade policy shift in more than 40 years will take place.

A desperately-needed global movement to push for religious freedom rights worldwide has begun, U.S. Ambassador for Religious Freedom Sam Brownback said at a United Nations event focused on religious freedom. The event kicked off by moderator Monsignor Tomasz Grysa, the deputy permanent observer of the Holy See to the U.N, who said that “the protection of the right to religious freedom must be one of the most urgent responsibilities of the international community.” He laid out the troubling landscape for religious freedom worldwide and said there has been a steady rise in persecution and discrimination against Christians and other religious…

Carmakers at the Geneva Motor Show unveiled some of their hybrid and electric models as they go forward in implementing the EU’s plans to slash carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from vehicles. The European Parliament and EU countries struck an agreement in December to cut emissions from cars by 37.5 percent by 2030, compared with 2021, and by 31 percent from vans. Renault will introduce hybrid versions of its top-selling models as the European auto industry races to meet tightening emissions goals.

London’s counter-terrorism police said they had launched an investigation into who mailed three small bombs to two airports and a major rail station on earlier this week. No one was injured by the devices, one of which caused a small fire in an office building at Heathrow airport. The Metropolitan Police received the first report of a suspicious device at Heathrow at 0955 GMT after staff opened a package which caught fire. Later, a similar package was identified in the post room of London’s busiest rail station, Waterloo, and a third was found in an office at London City airport…

On March 12 the government is expected to try again to get its deal approved, having sought extra assurances from the EU. If a deal is not reached May will ask parliament on March 13 if it wants to leave without a deal. If parliament rejects that outcome as well, mp’s will decide on March 14 if they want to try to delay Brexit, opening the door to a wholesale renegotiation, or a second referendum. “This is the first time the public decided in a referendum something that was not what most members of parliament were in favour of -…

Nearly 50 more members, including 11 kids, of a Chinese megachurch closed down by the communist government in December, were arrested at two different venues last Sunday, a watchdog group has reported. According to an update from the church, multiple homes that were hosting prayer gatherings on Feb. 24 were surrounded by police officers who ultimately interrupted the proceedings. At two of the home church services, every person in attendance was detained. In December following the arrest of Pastor Wang, over 160 church members were arrested. China ranks as the 27th worst country in the world when it comes to…