Volcano eruption in Guatemala, Ramadan disruption in Iraq

GUATEMALA: A volcano erupted near Guatemala City, the capital, on Sunday, killing at least 25 people and leaving many more missing, officials and local news media reported.

SOUTH KOREA: North Korean defectors living in South Korea are finding that warming relations actually put them at odds with South Korean policies.

ITALY has seen more than 13,500 migrants arrive by sea this year, but newly appointed Interior Minister Matteo Salvini plans to tell them, “Get ready to pack your bags.”

YEMEN: Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are putting heavy pressure on the Trump administration to step up military support for a major operation to retake the port of Hodeidah. The port city, currently controlled by Houthi rebels, is a key weapons supply line for the rebels, but a Saudi-led blockade has choked humanitarian supplies and medicine.

More than 2 million people are displaced by fighting in Yemen, and one good way to learn and pray for them is to follow Pray4Yemen on Twitter.

IRAQ: Ramadan is no picnic for Christians living in majority Muslim countries. Now, the Baghdad government has announced it will take “legal measures against people publicly breaking their fast (during the daytime) and referring them to the judiciary.” A maximum jail sentence could be six months in prison.

The penalties could fall hard on non-Muslims, who feel forced to observe the monthlong Muslim fast. “Especially for those who have jobs, they can't drink or eat during working times. There is no café, canteen or restaurant open at the offices or in the streets, so they too must fast until they return home,” one Christian living in Baghdad told me.

President Donald Trump plans to host an iftar meal to break the Ramadan fast at the White House next week

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