Naghmeh, the wife of American Pastor Saeed Abedini, who is imprisoned in Iran because of his Christian faith, said she is "very encouraged" by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's public statement calling for her husband's "immediate" release.

"I am very encouraged by Secretary Kerry's statement demanding Saeed's immediate release," said Naghmeh in a statement released by the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) on Friday, which is representing the pastor's family in the U.S.

"I am very happy to read that although Secretary Kerry has asked for medical treatment for Saeed, he does not stop there, and states that the best outcome is Saeed's immediate release," she said. "I hope to see more proactive actions from our government. Saeed and I are both proud to be Americans. I am hopeful that this will put more pressure on the Iranian government to act and free Saeed so he can return to our family in the United States." more >>

American pastor Saeed Abedini has sent a troubling letter to his wife, Naghmeh, detailing the beatings and harsh treatment he has been experiencing in Evin Prison in Tehran, Iran.

"My hair was shaven, under my eyes were swollen three times what they should have been, my face was swollen, and my beard had grown," pastor Abedini wrote in a letter obtained by the American Center for Law and Justice, which has been campaigning for his release.

The troubling letter reveals that although Iranian authorities had promised him medical treatment, he has not received it, and in fact has been denied proper care because of his faith. more >>

The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) blasted the U.S. State Department for its lack of action in helping the case of American pastor Saeed Abedini, in particular for failing to appear at a congressional hearing on Friday.

The law group, who is representing Abedini's wife and two children back in the U.S., called out the State Department for an email it sent claiming, "We believe we are doing everything we can publicly and privately," when the department didn't even send a single person to the hearing on Friday.

Furthermore, Congressman Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) said that the State Department should be "utterly ashamed" of its "deafening and almost cowardly silence" over the pastor's case. more >>

The Libyan embassy located in Cairo, Egypt, has re-opened days after protests over the death of an Egyptian Christian in a Libyan prison rocked the country's capitol.

The embassy originally announced its plans to temporarily close on Saturday, citing safety reasons. 

 "The embassy suspended all its consular and citizen services because [our] Coptic brothers demonstrated," embassy media adviser Abdul Hamid al-Safi told Reuters. more >>

Naghmeh, the wife of U.S. Pastor Saeed Abedini, who is serving eight years in a deadly prison in Iran for his faith, broke down as she testified on Capitol Hill, saying she has no heart to tell their kids that daddy might never survive if the government fails to protect him.

"Saeed is a husband and amazing father," Naghmeh told a standing-room only crowd at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission of the U.S. Congress on Friday. "The kids and I miss him terribly. Our kids hold onto the hope of seeing their daddy very soon," she said, struggling unsuccessfully to hold back her tears.

Pastor Abedini and Naghmeh have two kids, Rebekka Grace, 6, and Jacob Cyrus, 4. "A day does not go by that they do not ask for their daddy. A day does not go by that they do not long for him. Most nights they cry themselves to sleep, wanting daddy home." more >>

The Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches has voted to accept the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land as a full member of their organization.

Concluding a two-year process wherein the WCC leadership considered the application of the ELCJHL, the committee voted unanimously earlier this month to accept the church.

In a speech given to the WCC after their vote, ELCJHL Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan pointed to the longstanding cooperation his church has had with the WCC. more >>