Globe Trot: Marking Saeed Abedini's two years in jail

SAEED ABEDINI: Today marks two years since Iranian authorities detained and imprisoned American pastor Saeed Abenini. Hundreds of people gathered in Washington, D.C., on Thursday for a prayer vigil. Dozens of churches around the country have planned similar events for tonight.

At the Washington rally, Abedini’s wife Naghmeh read from a letter her husband sent to their daughter on her eighth birthday:

“In your mind you are asking: why Jesus isn’t answering your prayers and the prayers of all of the people around the world praying for my release and for me to be home with you and our family? The answer to the why is the who. Who is in control? Lord Jesus Christ is in control.”

‘NETWORK OF DEATH’: At the United Nations on Wednesday, President Barack Obama called on other nations to help in the battle against Islamic State (also known as ISIS) militants and other extremists and described a “network of death” in the Middle East.

Though Obama has clamored to distance himself from his predecessor, his comments at the UN carried echoes of President George W. Bush’s “axis of evil” speech more than a decade ago. Former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson offered this explanation: “When dealing with an ideology that inspires beheadings and mass murder, the English language only offers so many words that carry sufficient moral weight. ‘Evil’ and ‘death’ are two of them.”

IRAQ: As airstrikes continue in Syria, a review of six weeks of similar strikes in Iraq isn’t encouraging: Though Iraqi officials say the U.S. bombings have stopped Islamic State militants from advancing on Baghdad, the strikes have scarcely budged the terrorists from their hold on more than a quarter of the country.

In the weeks since Islamic State militants drove out the Christian population from places like Nineveh, they’ve set up their own police force, with freshly painted cars bearing the title: “Islamic Police Nineveh State.” A militant website said the new force would “implement orders of the religious judiciary.”

REFUGEE CRISIS:As Syrians and Iraqis have fled their homes, a severe refugee crisis deepens, and many wonder where they will go long-term. The civil war in Syria produced 2.5 million refugees last year. The U.S. took in 36. That’s partly because the U.S. accepts refugees on the basis of persecution for political or religious beliefs—not because they are fleeing war. But many of the refugees fleeing war in Syria and Iraq have faced religious persecution from rebels and radicals.

Washington Post correspondent Daniel Williams spoke with many persecuted Christians now living in Erbil and reported the Christians don’t plan to return to their homes. These refugees need more than temporary humanitarian aid, he said. They need a home:

“France has already taken a couple of planeloads of Christians out of Kurdistan. Much more is needed. Western countries ought to come together and offer refuge to the tens of thousands who want to leave Iraq.”

BEAUTY AMONG ASHES: It’s been a week of dark news from around the globe, but seasons continue, and bring beautiful fall scenes from all over the world. They also evoke a timely reminder from the Old Testament prophet Daniel: “He changes times and seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise …”