The World Evangelical Alliance is asking Christians to pray for the Middle East and speak up for human rights.
In a statement, the WEA said it was “deeply saddened” by the loss of life in the last few weeks of protests.
An estimated 1,000 people have died in violence in Libya as opponents
continue to battle forces loyal to leader Col Muammar Gaddafi.
The embattled leader is under increasing pressure to quit. Prime
Minister David Cameron said there was no place for Gaddafi in Libya's
future.
"All of this sends a clear message to this regime: it is time for Colonel Gaddafi to go and to go now.
"There is no future for Libya that includes him".
The government has frozen the assets of Gaddafi and his family, while
Foreign Minister William Hague said yesterday that their diplomatic
immunity had been revoked.
EU High Representative Catherine Ashton also said yesterday that the
EU would implement sanctions against Libya “as a matter of urgency”.
The WEA urged leaders in the region not to resort to violence.
It said: “The WEA is deeply saddened by the loss of life in the
region as a whole and pleads with all those who exercise power over
others not to abuse that power and not to take one more life.
“Young, educated, information-aware populations all over the region
are demonstrating that injustices and corruption, with resultant poverty
among so many ordinary people, cannot continue unchecked.”
Protests have broken out elsewhere in the region since Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was toppled two weeks ago.
In Yemen, the leader of the opposition Islah Party has called on
President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down as anti-government
demonstrations gather pace.
There are concerns for the wellbeing of thousands of opponents have
been protesting daily outside the main university after President Saleh
warned yesterday that he would use the army to “thwart any
conspiracies”.
The WEA asked people to encourage leaders in the region, old and new, to respect the human rights of all people.
“There should not be any second-class citizens anywhere – because
each individual is carefully created by God and therefore very valuable
in his sight.”
The WEA went on to appeal to leaders to uphold religious freedom,
saying that Christians in the region wanted to build a better future
along with other citizens.
“Every nation in the region counts the followers of Jesus among their
peoples – together they are deeply committed to the welfare of their
nations and are eager to play their full part in shaping their
countries’ future health,” it said.
“WEA further calls on leaders to place freedom of religion and belief at the centre of their political agendas.
“This freedom is a litmus test of the health of a society."
It added: “The future is very uncertain but contains potential for great good.”