The Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of bombing Sanaa airport, which is under Houthi control. Yemen’s exiled and largely powerless government claimed the Sanaa attack, but the Houthis have continued to specify Saudi Arabia in their public messages. (More on why below.)

Concerns remain about the Iran-backed group resuming attacks on the Red Sea shipping route, as an extension of the United States-Iran war. The Houthis (also known as Ansarallah) were redesignated by the US in 2025 as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

Trey Hulsey is a consultant who works with nonprofits and NGOs in the Middle East. He says that although it’s hard to predict what will happen, it’s in the Houthis’ best interests to keep the threat of attack open, not necessarily shut down the Red Sea gateway.

“Shipping companies are more likely to pay for the safe passage of their ships, as long as they believe that there’s a real possibility of their ships being hit,” Hulsey says. “I think the Houthis will continue to present that they may fire on ships that are using the Red Sea, but they won’t actually do it very often because they would rather [have] financial concessions than sunken ships.”

(Photo courtesy of Lara Jameson/Pexels)

To help understand the dynamics in last week’s Houthi-Saudi Arabia missile strikes, we have to look at some of the complex relationships surrounding Yemen.

Yemen has been mired in civil war for over a decade, and other countries largely influence its path. Saudi Arabia borders Yemen to the north and has a vested interest in what goes on across its borders, where the Houthis control much of northwestern Yemen. Hulsey points back to events in late 2025, when Saudi Arabia had a falling-out with the separatist group called the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which governs part of southern Yemen.

“Since then, the STC is significantly weaker than it was, because the support of Saudi Arabia and the UAE meant a lot in terms of material and financing and expertise,” says Hulsey. “So Saudi Arabia decided, ’We’re going to work directly with the Houthis ourselves. We’re going to try to come to an understanding.’” 

That has not been simple, since Hulsey says Saudis and Houthis have competing interests. 

“This breaking of the ceasefire, I think it’s less of an important milestone. It’s more a symptom of a broken relationship that’s been broken for a while now,” he says. 

Yemen’s religious landscape, war-weariness, and the growing Church

Yemen’s small Christian community lives in a challenging context geopolitically, economically, and religiously. 

On the geopolitical level, Hulsey explains that Saudi Arabia is generally the leading voice among Sunni Muslims in the Middle East. The United Arab Emirates and Qatar are among these Sunni-majority nations. Meanwhile, Iran is generally the leader of Shia Muslims, who are present in parts of Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon. 

“It’s called often ‘the Shia arc’ there, because it forms kind of an arc on the map,” Hulsey says.

Yemen’s population is thought to be mostly Sunni (65%), but with a large Shia population (35%). The Houthis align with the Zaydi branch of Shia Islam. 

Economically, Yemen is one of the poorest nations in the world, with over 80 percent of its population living below the poverty line, according to the UN Refugee Agency. Hulsey says people are surviving, “but it’s with significant outside help from big governmental programs, big international NGOs, and also many small ones that are allowed to work there by the different governments.”

Hulsey says the average Yemeni person is sick of wars and would prefer that people stop fighting. 

“That’s a somewhat simplistic answer, but I think it’s also a real answer,” he says. “The average Yemeni is done with all of this constant chaos, and would be very happy if everything settled down and people could get on with regular life.”

Children in Yemen (Stock photo courtesy of Irwan Zahuri via Pexels)

Yemen’s small Christian community doesn’t escape the economic hardships of civil war. On top of these struggles, they face opposition from the government, family, and society because of their faith.

“They sacrifice far more than most of us are aware to be followers of Jesus,” says Hulsey. 

He says since late October-November 2025, around 50 Yemeni believers have been imprisoned by the Houthi government, “simply because they’re believers, no other reason.”

“Anyone can kind of turn up the heat on you if they choose to report you to the police or to security forces and say, ‘We think this person is a Christian. Someone should look into this,’” says Hulsey. 

Yet Hulsey says the Church has reached a critical mass. That means it is large enough to be a significant, growing presence. That growth happens as others see Christians endure suffering rather than give up their faith in Jesus. 

One Yemeni woman we’ll call “Latifa” became a Christian. Her neighbor reported her and turned her in, leading to Latifa’s imprisonment. 

“Latifa actually led that woman who turned her in to Christ,” Hulsey says, “and this is not unusual in these scenarios, in these countries where persecution is so tangible.” 

“We in the West can talk about carrying our cross and the cost of discipleship and following Jesus. And yes, there is a cost, but in places where persecution is so active and the hostility to the gospel is so open, the cost is evident. You don’t have to be the one living it to observe that it costs someone else something to claim Christ as Lord.” 

Pray for Yemeni believers

Hulsey suggests praying for the Yemeni church to grow and be mature and healthy. Instead of praying for safety, “it’s good to pray for grace and strength to endure what God sends [their] way.” 

Pray for the church to multiply. “We can pray that God would make dead hearts alive and open blind eyes, so that people will know Him and know the truth of Christ.”

Pray also for Yemeni believers to have opportunities to know they are part of the capital-C Church, even in the isolation they experience. “I don’t know how the average Westerner can make that [connection] be the case, but that’s something we can pray for,” says Hulsey. “That they would know that the broader church is aware of their existence, loves them, and wants good for them, just like we want good for all Jesus’ followers.” 

Header photo: Sanaa, Capital Municipality, Yemen (Stock photo courtesy of Shaker Abdullah via Unsplash)

Every day brings new headlines of escalating conflict, political instability, displaced families, and deepening uncertainty. Nations are being shaken. Communities are living in fear. Millions are wondering what tomorrow will hold.

But beneath the headlines, something else is happening.

Across the Middle East, people are asking questions they were not asking before.

Questions about hope, purpose, peace, eternity, and about Jesus.

God moves amid chaos

Throughout history, God has often moved most powerfully during seasons of upheaval. We don’t believe the Church grows best when it’s safest. Throughout history, it has often grown most when it has been forced to depend completely on Jesus.

The early Church spread under persecution.

The underground Church in China expanded through decades of oppression.

Iran’s house church movement has grown despite imprisonment and execution.

Not because suffering is good.

But because suffering exposes the things we have built our lives upon. When those foundations collapse, hearts often become open to the only Kingdom that cannot be shaken.

The same war creating unprecedented suffering is also creating unprecedented openness to Jesus.

That is why this moment matters.

Persecuted Christians return

Right now, in one undisclosed nation where Global Catalytic Ministries serves, there are believed to be only around one hundred known believers remaining.

Churches have been dismantled.

Believers have been arrested.

Militias continue hunting Christians.

Entire house churches now gather in secret, knowing discovery could cost them everything.

(Photo credit: Imagens Cristãs via Flickr)

Yet in the middle of this darkness, we witnessed something that reminded us exactly how Jesus builds His Church.

Our lead coach and his wife had spent months recovering from severe persecution after faithfully serving in this country. During their time away, they invested in a new group of Arab disciple-makers from across the region, pouring into them everything they had learned through years of following Jesus under persecution.

When it came time for them to return, those disciples did something unexpected.

They gathered around Brother T and Sister L. They knelt. They washed their feet.

It was an act of honor.

An act of gratitude.

A quiet commissioning.

Just as Jesus washed the feet of His disciples before sending them into the world, these disciple-makers prayed over them and sent them back into one of the hardest places on earth.

No one knew what was about to happen

While they were waiting to board their flight, we received devastating news. Someone connected to the underground Church had abandoned the faith and begun cooperating with the police.

Believers were being identified.

House churches were being exposed.

Christians were being rounded up and held for ransom.

(Graphic courtesy Global Catalytic Ministries)

We immediately tried to reach them. By then, their passports had already been stamped.

They chose to continue forward.

Not because they believed they were invincible.

Not because they were chasing adventure.

Because they believed the people of that nation still needed to hear the Gospel.

More believers follow

Today, they remain in hiding as they continue serving the underground Church. But the story doesn’t end there. The disciple-makers who had washed their feet watched everything unfold last week.

They watched their mentors walk toward danger instead of away from it.

They learned about the arrests.

They heard about the churches being dismantled.

They understood exactly what following Jesus into that country could cost.

And then something extraordinary happened.

Three of these Arab disciples have now said yes to going into that same country.

They are not looking for applause.

They are not trying to prove their courage.

They are not seeking recognition.

They simply believe that every person deserves the opportunity to hear that Jesus can forgive sin, heal brokenness, bring peace in the middle of suffering, and that death is not final because Christ has conquered the grave.

They refuse to let fear determine where the Gospel can and cannot go.

Because this is how the Kingdom has always advanced.

(Photo courtesy Global Catalytic Ministries)

One disciple says yes.

Then another.

Then another.

The enemy may imprison believers.

He may scatter churches.

He may threaten lives.

But he cannot stop a Jesus movement. As long as ordinary men and women keep saying yes to Jesus, the Gospel will continue moving forward.

Will you help keep the Gospel moving forward?

War has not stopped the mission. If anything, it has made it more urgent.

Every month, faithful partners help equip, coach, strengthen, and send indigenous disciple-makers into places where few others can go.

If you have never become a monthly partner, would you prayerfully consider joining us today?

Your monthly generosity helps ensure that even in the darkest places, the hope of Jesus continues to advance. Become a monthly partner here.

Header image courtesy of Global Catalytic Ministries. 

Peace talks negotiated by the United States produced a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon’s government at the end of June. However, implementation of the deal remains problematic as Hezbollah refuses to comply, and Israeli strikes continue.

Walk through the South today and you won’t find peace. You will find neighborhoods reduced to dust and over a million displaced souls living in cars, tents, and overcrowded shelters. The world’s attention turned away, leaving families to navigate a shattered reality.
(Graphic, caption courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Though many Lebanese criticize the framework agreement, Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says the Lebanese government didn’t have much choice.

“If we miss the push towards peace and negotiations in the region, we will be left with a terribly destroyed southern part of Lebanon with no hope of rebuilding, nor hope of seeing the internally displaced having the chance to return home,” Melki explains.

While Lebanese citizens disagree on how peace should be achieved, Melki says most agree it’s necessary for the nation.

“Lebanon, as a majority population, is eager and thirsty for living in peace with its neighbors, and in peace with one another.”

The stalled peace process carries a human cost, especially for Shia Muslims in southern Lebanon.

War costs and opportunity

Some of Hezbollah’s biggest supporters are also the most affected by the ongoing violence. “The whole nation has been dragged into a war, but the Shia Muslims are the ones who are suffering the most,” Melki says.

“Lebanon is divided into three major religious groups: one third of our population is Shia Muslim, another third is Sunni Muslim, and the [final] third are Christians. Hezbollah comes from a Shia Muslim background, so one-third of our population today feels it’s been held hostage by Hezbollah.”

(Graphic courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Pray for believers as they extend help and hope to those in need, regardless of their background.

“Pray that we can show the love of Jesus Christ, unconditional love, to people who have not heard of the Christian faith before,” Melki requests.

Help through Heart for Lebanon here. Your assistance enables Gospel workers to meet the immediate needs of people who are struggling or displaced due to the ongoing war in Lebanon and to share the life-changing hope of the Gospel with them.

“Heart for Lebanon has doubled its ministry opportunities in southern Lebanon. Today, we care for more than 7,000 families every month. It has stretched us to the limit, but we also understand that it is important to help a family survive this hardship,” Melki says.

“This is our opportunity to bring Jesus to every home, to every community, and to every villager. Now, what they do with that – that’s between them and God.”

Header image is a representative photo that depicts mourning Shia Muslims. Photo courtesy of Payam Moein, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons. 

Hezbollah flag
(Photo courtesy mhrezaa/Unsplash)

The agreement said Israel and Lebanon had agreed to launch a pilot program in two areas near the “yellow line,” which marks Israeli-held territory. Under the plan, Hezbollah would be dismantled, and the Lebanese army would gain control of those areas.

Hezbollah, which did not take part in the negotiations, rejected the agreement. Hezbollah MP Hassan Falallah told Al Mayadeen that Beirut would be unable to enforce the deal unless it was willing to risk a civil war.

Next steps

Key military leaders met yesterday to discuss how to implement the pact. The proposed “framework” for future talks between Israel and Lebanon drew mixed reactions from Lebanese citizens.

Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says Friday’s trilateral agreement between Israel, Lebanon, and the U.S. is important because “Lebanon, as a nation, never has declared a war against Israel, nor has Israel declared a war against Lebanon.”

Instead, Melki says, “It has always been Hezbollah, now, and other paramilitary groups in the past decades, that have used the Lebanese territory as a launching pad for attacks against Israel.”

Civilians pay

Meanwhile, Lebanon is paying a heavy price for Hezbollah’s wars. The current conflict follows fighting that Hezbollah began in 2023 in defense of Hamas.

“For two years, Hezbollah and Israel have been tit-for-tat shelling each other in southern Lebanon. 11,000 homes have been destroyed, more than 4000 individuals have been killed, and more than 13,000 individuals have been injured,” Melki says.

“All those are innocent civilians; we’re not counting militants. Add to it the 1.2 million internally displaced folks, predominantly people from southern Lebanon, fleeing that region to Beirut and the Bekaa Valley.”

Help and hope

Heart for Lebanon helps people caught in the middle, Christian and Muslim alike. Find ways to support that work here.

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

“There are more than 33 small villages along the borders between Lebanon and Israel where Christian villagers live and are completely disconnected from the rest of the world,” Melki says.

“We’re one of the very few faith-based Christian ministries that are able to reach these villages.”

Working alongside nongovernmental organizations, Heart for Lebanon helps organize an aid convoy to Christian villages in the war zone. First, the team gathers requests: “We receive a list of the material needed by those villagers through the municipality or elders in the village,” Melki says.

Next, the convoy is assembled: “Every NGO will bring in what they have as supplies, put them in a convoy led by the Red Cross, and then negotiate the safe passage of those trucks to the villages.”

Header image depicts Hezbollah flag. Photo courtesy Paul Keller via Flickr/CC-BY-NC 2.0.

Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says, “Our prayer is that those negotiations will go forth productively and will come up with some very affirmative steps to keep the ceasefire holding and lead into a long-term peace agreement.”

So far, talks have done little to stop fighting on the ground. Melki says, “Prior to this last ceasefire, there have been more than a dozen ceasefires that did not last for more than an hour or two hours.”

The longest pause after three months of war began Saturday night. The ceasefire came as a result of a U.S.-Iran agreement to stop fighting on all fronts – including Lebanon.

Because today’s peace talks involve Israel and the Lebanese government, the Iranian proxy Hezbollah remains a wildcard.

“Neither the Lebanese government nor the US nor Israel wants a seat for Hezbollah at the (negotiating) table,” Melki says.

“Our presidents made it very clear: ‘We welcome every party that wants to help, but no one negotiates on behalf of Lebanon except its government.’”

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Meanwhile, suffering continues. Fighting has killed over 4,000 people since March, and more than 1 million have been displaced.

Heart for Lebanon is meeting needs in Christ’s name, and your support keeps the work going. Learn about giving options here.

“This is our golden opportunity, not only to care and support families in great need, but also to bring the Gospel in meaningful and tangible ways [to] people who have been deceived [and] indoctrinated,” Melki says.

“Our goal is to make sure that every family we touch, every individual we serve, we tell them of the Jesus that we believe in.”

Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon. 

Samuel of Redemptive Stories says the regional situation is complicated, yet connected.

“It’s pretty much everyone against Israel, in one way, shape, or form. [Türkiye] is certainly part of that, and has always been anti-Israel, especially Erdogan,” he explains.

Neighboring Türkiye is now weighing in. President Tayyip Erdogan says regional instability could lead to more refugees and financial pressure.

“He’s basically trying to communicate that Lebanon is a sovereign nation, it should take care of itself,” Samuel says.

Erdogan’s comments also imply “that the effects of Israel’s continued attacks destabilize the region, including making it more difficult for Syria to stand on its own two legs,” he adds.

Yet hope remains. One Kurdish pastor recently told Samuel about the Gospel growth he sees among ethnic minorities.

“In the midst of all of this chaos in our region is an opportunity for the Gospel to go forth, and we’re seeing that, in the north part of Syria, among the Kurds, God is doing something special,” Samuel says.

“Many, many are coming to faith and following Jesus.”

Gospel growth

Samuel also describes Gospel movements among Syria’s Alawite and Druze communities following violence. ISIS, massacres, and attacks on minority communities have caused people to ask deeper questions and, in some cases, turn to Jesus.

(AI photo generated by ChatGPT)

Samuel says last spring, “There was a massacre of many people, some say thousands,” in Syria’s Alawite community.

“Now, in churches and homes across the coastal region of Syria, there are hundreds of new believers after all of that occurred.”

Later in 2025, Syria’s Druze community fell victim. “A brother was just there recently, and he told of over 65 people who have come to faith in Christ and been baptized,” Samuel says.

“It’s in that instability that God does something. His Spirit moves, and people are drawn to Him.”

Local believers are responding with boldness. Partners in places like Syria and Lebanon continue to care for neighbors and share the Gospel despite danger and instability. Will you pray for them?

“On all fronts, we just encourage them to be faithful in whatever task that is before them, the calling that God has put on their lives, and God will be faithful to bring about His good purposes,” Samuel says.

Header and story images are representative AI photos generated by ChatGPT. 

As Mike with Global Catalytic Ministries explains, “It’s not the absence of fear, it’s what you do with fear.”

GCM partners with Gospel workers committed to serving Jesus in places like Syria, where sharing Christ with the Druze or Shi’ite communities could get you killed. More about that here.

“As Muslims have wiped out Christians, we want to bring back Jesus in these places,” Mike says.

“It’s complex, but we want to make sure Christian strongholds are established.”

Serving where faith can cost everything

Late last year, Sister H sensed the Lord calling her away from personal safety and toward her own Shiite community in Syria. As she attempted to pass through an ISIS-controlled corridor, “She’s arrested; she’s being interrogated,” Mike says.

“She thinks things are going to get bad, so she starts to pray, ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear?’” he continues.

“As they’re interrogating, she just is praying, proclaiming the promises of God.”

Suddenly and without reason, she was released and allowed to pass through.

(Photo courtesy of Global Catalytic Ministries)

“She went through all of that just to reach the single Shia person that she was connected to,” Mike says. “She’s willing to go into the pit and put her life on the line.”

Today, Sister H is embedded in a Shiite community, committed to discipling where it is most dangerous. Praise God for her faith, and pray that it will grow even deeper as she continues to follow Jesus.

Sister S, another committed Gospel worker trained by GCM, serves among Syria’s Druze community. Thanks to her steady obedience, the first Druze baptism took place in 2025. Pray for continued Gospel growth among the Druze community.

GCM wants to send three waves of disciples to deepen and expand these Jesus-centered strongholds in one of the most persecuted places on earth. Here’s how you can help.

Header and story images courtesy of Global Catalytic Ministries. 

People in the Middle East today live in the midst of conflicts that are anything but simple. Roots go deep, and history runs back for centuries or millennia. Different perspectives abound on people’s rights and responsibilities in these conflicts, even among followers of Christ. 

“The Middle East is something that people are constantly wanting to fight over and fight for in different ways, for different reasons,” says a man we’ll call Brother H. 

A woman we’ll call Sister L says, “We actually find it really exhausting to be involved in these conversations [about different perspectives], because we have really good friends from very different camps when it comes to the political, the biblical.” 

Brother H and Sister L are Kurdish disciple-makers connected with Global Catalytic Ministries. Both grew up in war. Today, they are living out their Christian faith in a difficult context. They navigate many different perspectives on the wars in the Middle East, offering some of their own for others to consider. 

“We share these things with hopefully a humility of ‘Look, we really don’t have the answers, but what we do know is it’s really complex, and we’re trying to work out every day what does this mean?’” says Sister L. 

It’s not about what you think it’s about

“We’ve always felt, even growing up as kids, that it’s the resources that everyone’s fighting over, but [those in conflict] would say they’re fighting for other things,” says Sister L.

She sees Islam not as a threat worse than all others, but as just another world of brokenness to be praying into.

“Islam in itself is dark, but so is capitalism. So much Western politics is so dark. What you’re seeing when it comes to the Epstein files, these are all dark,” she says. 

“But for some reason, the big thing that’s blown up in the West now — and even in the Christian world — is the danger of Islam and Iran and terrorism. I think this is a cover-up for all the other darkness that people don’t want to be dealing with.”

Brother H is a father who helps walk his kids through wartime realities — realities like those he grew up under. 

“[We are] helping them focus on who God is and who we are in the context of God’s bigger story, and actually, what is our role during this time, to be able to represent and be the voice and the hands and feet of God,” he says. “I think that’s why for us, it’s really significant that we seek God’s presence. We seek God’s will in this.” 

He adds that Christians must also answer God’s call to pray for leaders. 

“You think about David and Saul. David never disrespected or dishonored [Saul]. He even had the opportunity to kill him, but he didn’t. So there’s an honoring and praying for our leaders, even though everything you see and read is so wrong, is so everything that you know is not from God.” 

In all the complexities, Brother H believes only one place is safe to land. 

“That the gospel is for all. What Jesus did on the cross is what’s important and what is significant. Now, [landing there] is easier said than done. However, God is in charge through it all,” he says. 

“So how do you then journey with your kids? How do you then journey with those you’re discipling and the people you’re leading? It’s a very complex, multifaceted situation.”

Sister L believes that emotions are adding pain and complexity to the conflict today. 

“I think the only place we can take it back to is what is on God’s heart when we see these things happening? How much is the political and the historical points of view impacting us? How much is the hurt and pain that various displaced peoples or journeys of trauma impacting everybody? How much is even our theology being impacted by that?”

Pray for God to rain down His wisdom on all of His people as we live in or closely watch the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Pray for soft hearts toward one another. Pray for wisdom for our leaders today. 

Header photo courtesy of Lara Jameson via Pexels. 

On Monday, Israel ordered the residents of seven villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate. Two of the villages are a mere 20-minute drive from Heart for Lebanon’s Hope Center. 

“We still can operate from our center, we still can reach out to people, but you could tell the fear that it can become another battleground,” says Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki.

Peace talks brokered by the United States haven’t fully collapsed yet. However, renewed fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, and the threat of Israeli strikes on Beirut, have thrown the talks off track. 

“If things keep getting worse, Israel might push the evacuation line beyond the Zahrani River, which means then our center would become part of those areas that need to be completely evacuated,” says Melki.

(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

Heart for Lebanon’s summer outreach is on the line, including their Summer of Hope programs.

“This is VBS on steroids, a lot of fun activities, a lot of music, teaching, games, Bible stories, drama, singing,” says Melki. These programs give kids the space to be kids again and to learn about God. 

The Summer of Hope has already begun in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. But for their Hope Center in southern Lebanon, the team is developing an alternative plan.

“Instead of bringing the students to our center for our Summer of Hope ministry, we will take them to safer areas in southern Lebanon — places where they can play freely, where they don’t hear those drones over them all the time, or hear the air strikes,” says Melki.

Safety is becoming harder to find, however. On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Forces issued evacuation warnings for three more villages in southern Lebanon. The IDF has also warned Christian neighborhoods of Tyre that Hezbollah militants are among them. If residents do not expel Hezbollah, the IDF said, they will order more evacuations and take action. Tyre is less than a 40-minute drive away from Heart for Lebanon’s closest Hope Center.

Find your place in the story

Pray that Lebanese believers can continue to share Christ in word and deed.

(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

“The number of families that we are reaching to help keeps growing. In fact, the resources are very limited in the entire nation. We are coming alongside other churches and other church ministries and faith-based organizations providing aid to those small entities,” says Melki. 

For example, on June 1 alone, Melki says Heart for Lebanon provided 540 food parcels to sister churches and faith-based NGOs who had run out of resources.

“Pray for wisdom, pray for safety, pray for perseverance, and pray for the much-needed resources, so we can continue to do what God has called us to do: help lead people from despair to hope in Christ, and Christ alone,” says Melki. 

Connect with Heart for Lebanon and learn how you can help resource their ministry in further prayer and financial support.

Header photo of Summer of Hope outreach courtesy of Heart for Lebanon via Facebook.

Secretary Marco Rubio attends working-level peace talks with Israel and Lebanon at the White House in Washington, D.C., April 23, 2026. (Official State Department photo by Freddie Everett)

Tensions reached a boiling point yesterday when Israel responded to Hezbollah attacks, carrying out its deepest incursion since the 2000 war. U.S. President Donald Trump described a de-escalation between the warring sides on Monday afternoon:

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to dial back fighting after he held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and communicated with the Lebanese militant group through mediators.

Trump announced the development in a social media post following a call with Netanyahu, whose forces recently made their deepest incursion into Lebanon in more than a quarter-century. Trump there would be no Israeli troops “going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back.”

Cease-fire hopes falter

As with most Middle East conflicts, the latest escalation doesn’t occur in a vacuum.

“Last Thursday and Friday, a military delegation from the Lebanese army met at the Pentagon with an Israeli delegation, which is the first time in the history of those two nations that military representatives meet together,” Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki explains.

“We were hoping that the outcome of that meeting would come to a ceasefire and some sort of an agreement on the Israelis’ withdrawal from southern Lebanon and Hezbollah’s disarmament,” he continues.

“Unfortunately, things are going in the wrong direction. That’s not what we’ve been hoping for. That’s not what we’ve been praying for.”

On Sunday, Lebanese media reported progress toward a new cease-fire agreement in U.S.-mediated talks between Israel and Lebanon.

“The Lebanese government needs to figure out a way to contain Hezbollah and convince Hezbollah, for the better of the whole nation, that a cease-fire should be brokered and brokered soon,” Melki says.

“Iran, on the other hand, has pulled away from its negotiations with the U.S., which is not a good indicator at all, because that means even those negotiations seem to be stalled and might lead to further confrontation in the entire region.”

In a season where many feel forgotten, we believe that the Gospel is best shared through a ministry of presence.
(Photo, caption courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

Christian villages face shortages

Monday was “A very, very violent day in southern Lebanon, in Beirut, in the Bekaa Valley, as well as in the northern villages of Israel,” Melki says.

“Hezbollah continues to shell Israel using drones and other military means, and Israel continues to retaliate against Hezbollah. We have seen a very high spike in casualties and damage all around.”

Most businesses are closed in southern Lebanon, and essential supplies are hard to find.

“There are a lot of small Christian villages right at the borders between Israel and Lebanon, and they’ve been under a significant economic and military siege. We sent 700 food parcels with the help of the Red Cross to those villages,” Melki says.

Each delivery offers encouragement to believers and a Gospel introduction to those who don’t know Christ. You can support a family in need here.

Pray for an end to the violence in Lebanon.

“Tuesday, June 2, and Wednesday, June 3, a State Department-brokered meeting will take place. Civilian delegates from the Lebanese government and the Israeli government will meet, and we hope that those meetings will turn out a little better,” Melki says.

Header and story images courtesy Heart for Lebanon.