Hungarian Conservative

The Afghanistan War started exactly 22 years ago. Two years after it came to an end, our analysis looks back at the invasion and the botched nation-building, attempting to pinpoint the reasons of the ambitious project’s failure.

According to the 2023 World Watch List compiled by Open Doors, Pakistan is the seventh most dangerous country for Christians in the world. There are around 4.2 million Christians in Pakistan—only 1.8 per cent of the country’s population of more than 229 million people. Pakistani Christians are considered second-class citizens and are discriminated against in every public and private life aspect.

Marcela Szymanski of the charity Aid to the Church in Need also welcomed the announcement. ‘It is absolutely extraordinary that six years after Hungary created a department in charge of persecuted Christians, another country finally joins them in acknowledging this reality. Not one single other nation with a Christian majority has dared to do so.’

The attack, carried out by nearly 50 armed militants, took place at the facility operated by MOL Pakistan Oil and Gas Company in the Hangu district near the Afghan border, Pakistani police official Irfan Khan said. 

Pope Francis thanked the Catholic church in Hungary for its charitable work. ‘You have built up a network that links pastoral workers, volunteers, parish and diocesan Caritas organizations, while also engaging prayer groups, communities of believers, and organisations belonging to other confessions, yet united in the ecumenical fellowship that is born of charity,’ he noted. ‘Thank you too, for having welcomed—not only with generosity but also with enthusiasm—so many refugees from Ukraine.’

The Asia-Pacific region is facing its worst energy crisis in years, and the consequences of their responses will likely affect the entire globe.