For nearly 300 days a Czech Christian, Petr Jasek, has been imprisoned in Sudan for serving and helping Sudanese believers. Now Mr. Jasek’s family has asked VOM Korea to raise prayer and letter support from Korea on behalf of Petr and the two Sudanese pastors with whom he is imprisoned and with whom he may be sentenced to death. Please join Dr. Foley and I and our VOMK team in writing and sending a letter of encouragement today and in speaking to the Lord daily about these brothers and their families. Details follow here and on our website. Thank you for your prompt action and your fervent, daily attention to this matter with the Lord.
—Pastor Foley

Two pastors and a Czech aid worker are among four people standing trial for “crimes against national security” in Khartoum, Sudan. If found guilty on all charges, the men could be sentenced to death.

Those being tried include Rev. Hassan Abduraheem and Rev. Kuwa Shamal, both pastors in the Sudan Church of Christ; Petr Jasek, an aid worker from the Czech Republic; and Abdulmonem Abdumawla, another Sudanese national.

Mr. Jasek’s family has asked The Voice of the Martyrs to bring his situation to the attention of Korean Christians, asking for prayer and advocacy as the trial continues.

“We are literally fighting for these men’s lives,” said Dr. Hyun Sook Foley, President for The Voice of the Martyrs Korea. “The case against two pastors, an aid worker and another Sudanese man revolves around providing medical care to an injured Darfur native, Mr. Ali Omer,” Foley said. “These men are not spies. They were not inciting a revolt. They aren’t pushing a political agenda. These four are simply trying to serve and help. Only tyrants consider helping people a crime, and the four men should be released immediately.”

Sudan’s president, Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir, is the only current head of state under indictment by the International Criminal Court. Considered a fugitive by the court, al-Bashir stands charged on five counts of crimes against humanity, two counts of war crimes and three counts of genocide. Sudan is one of three nations, along with Iran and Syria, that the U.S. State Department identifies as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.

Mr. Jasek has a 20-year background in the medical field, including 10 years as a hospital administrator. This experience and training uniquely qualified him to serve suffering people in places like Sudan. Mr. Jasek has assisted Voice of the Martyrs on different occasions to provide care to persecuted Christians in Sudan and Nigeria, including medical care for Christians attacked by Boko Haram.

In the first letter Mr. Jasek sent to his family after his arrest in December 2015, he stated that “God holds the key to my cell. He will open the door in His timing.”

The Voice of the Martyrs invites you to stand with Rev. Abduraheem, Rev. Shamal and Mr. Jasek in two ways:

1. Pray for these three men. Please e-mail us your prayers for these brothers at [email protected]. We will provide the families of our Christian brothers with a link to these prayers so they can see that believers from all over the world are praying for them and for their imprisoned husbands and fathers.

2. Write a letter to each of these brothers. Please see instructions at www.vomkorea.kr. The website provides information on composing your letters and mailing them to each prisoner, in care of the Sudan Embassy in Seoul, South Korea. Your letters will show the Sudanese government that Christians around the world are watching the trial and praying for these imprisoned Christians.