ORAT - Office for Refugees, Archdiocese of Toronto

ORAT - Office for Refugees, Archdiocese of Toronto The Catholic community in Toronto is deeply concerned about those who suffer as refugees.

As Canadaโ€™s largest private sponsor, the Archdiocese of Toronto through its Office for Refugees and countless volunteers, work to resettle suffering refugees to Canada. As Canadaโ€™s largest private sponsor, the Archdiocese of Toronto through its Office for Refugees, works to resettle to Canada those who have been forced to flee their homeland and who are unable to return. Together with the help of

countless individuals, parishes and community groups, we welcome and journey with refugees as they begin their new life in Canada.

๐Œ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ๐ž ๐„๐š๐ฌ๐ญ'๐ฌ ๐‡๐จ๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐Ÿ๐ฒ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐’๐ž๐œ๐ซ๐ž๐ญ ๐„๐ฑ๐ฉ๐จ๐ฌ๐ž๐ | ๐…๐ซ. ๐Š๐ข๐ž๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐Œ๐ข๐œ๐ก๐š๐ž๐ฅ ๐Š๐ง๐จ๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ž๐ฌ๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘‡โ„Ž๐‘’ ๐‘€๐‘–๐‘โ„Ž๐‘Ž๐‘’๐‘™ ๐พ๐‘›๐‘œ๐‘ค๐‘™๐‘’๐‘  ๐‘†โ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘คIn this powerful...
05/14/2026

๐Œ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ๐ž ๐„๐š๐ฌ๐ญ'๐ฌ ๐‡๐จ๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐Ÿ๐ฒ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐’๐ž๐œ๐ซ๐ž๐ญ ๐„๐ฑ๐ฉ๐จ๐ฌ๐ž๐ | ๐…๐ซ. ๐Š๐ข๐ž๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐Œ๐ข๐œ๐ก๐š๐ž๐ฅ ๐Š๐ง๐จ๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ž๐ฌ
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘‡โ„Ž๐‘’ ๐‘€๐‘–๐‘โ„Ž๐‘Ž๐‘’๐‘™ ๐พ๐‘›๐‘œ๐‘ค๐‘™๐‘’๐‘  ๐‘†โ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘ค

In this powerful interview, Michael Knowles sits down with Fr. Benedict Kiely to expose the often-overlooked crisis of Christian persecution across the Middle East. Drawing on firsthand experience, Fr. Kiely reveals the harsh realities facing ancient Christian communities โ€” from targeted violence and displacement to the broader threats of radical Islam โ€” while addressing why this โ€œhorrifying secretโ€ receives so little attention in the West. Click here to see the full interview. Click link below to see the full interview:

PreBorn! - Make a difference for generations to come. Donate securely online at https://preborn.com/KNOWLES or dial #250 keyword 'BABY'Whatโ€™s really happenin...

๐‡๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐œ ๐‚๐š๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐œ ๐œ๐ก๐ฎ๐ซ๐œ๐ก ๐ข๐ง ๐Œ๐จ๐ณ๐š๐ฆ๐›๐ข๐ช๐ฎ๐ž ๐๐ž๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐ฒ๐ž๐ ๐ข๐ง '๐ฌ๐œ๐ž๐ง๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐ซ๐จ๐ซ' ๐›๐ฒ ๐ˆ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐š๐ฆ๐ข๐œ ๐ž๐ฑ๐ญ๐ซ๐ž๐ฆ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฌ๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘‡โ„Ž๐‘’ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘™๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘…๐‘’๐‘”๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘Ÿ...
05/14/2026

๐‡๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐œ ๐‚๐š๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐œ ๐œ๐ก๐ฎ๐ซ๐œ๐ก ๐ข๐ง ๐Œ๐จ๐ณ๐š๐ฆ๐›๐ข๐ช๐ฎ๐ž ๐๐ž๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐ฒ๐ž๐ ๐ข๐ง '๐ฌ๐œ๐ž๐ง๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐ซ๐จ๐ซ' ๐›๐ฒ ๐ˆ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐š๐ฆ๐ข๐œ ๐ž๐ฑ๐ญ๐ซ๐ž๐ฆ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฌ
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘‡โ„Ž๐‘’ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘™๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘…๐‘’๐‘”๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘Ÿ

A historic Catholic church in northern Mozambique was destroyed in a targeted attack by the Islamic State-Mozambique on April 30. Extremists razed the St. Louis de Montfort Church in Meza, Cabo Delgado province, along with parish offices, a missionariesโ€™ residence, and a church-run kindergarten. Bishop Antรณnio Juliasse Ferreira Sandramo described the assault as a โ€œscene of terror,โ€ part of the groupโ€™s sustained campaign of violence against Christian communities in the region since 2017. To read the full article, click the link below:

A Catholic church in northern Mozambique was targeted in an attack by the Islamic State group that has carried out attacks against Christians and Muslims in the country since 2017.

๐Œ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐š๐œ๐ž '๐ ๐ซ๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฌ๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฆ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐š๐ง ๐œ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ'๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐ถโ„Ž๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘Ž๐‘› ๐‘‡๐‘œ๐‘‘๐‘Ž๐‘ฆThree years after deadly sectar...
05/14/2026

๐Œ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐š๐œ๐ž '๐ ๐ซ๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฌ๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฆ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐š๐ง ๐œ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ'
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐ถโ„Ž๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘Ž๐‘› ๐‘‡๐‘œ๐‘‘๐‘Ž๐‘ฆ

Three years after deadly sectarian violence erupted in Indiaโ€™s Manipur state in 2023, Christians from the predominantly Kuki-Zo community continue to face a grave and escalating humanitarian crisis. The clashes, in which Hindu Meitei groups targeted Kuki-Zo areas, left at least 258 people dead, thousands of homes destroyed, and nearly 59,000 people still living in relief camps as of March 2026. Despite the violence subsiding, ethnic divisions remain entrenched through government-controlled buffer zones, with Christian leaders criticizing the lack of accountability, justice for victims of murder and sexual violence, and obstacles preventing displaced Christians from returning to their homes and places of worship. Click the link below to read the full article:

Three years on the crisis is far from over.

Historic Catholic church in Mozambique destroyed in 'scene of terror' by Islamic extremistsSource: The Catholic Register...
05/14/2026

Historic Catholic church in Mozambique destroyed in 'scene of terror' by Islamic extremists
Source: The Catholic Register

A historic Catholic church in northern Mozambique was destroyed in a targeted attack by the Islamic State-Mozambique on April 30. Extremists razed the St. Louis de Montfort Church in Meza, Cabo Delgado province, along with parish offices, a missionariesโ€™ residence, and a church-run kindergarten. Bishop Antรณnio Juliasse Ferreira Sandramo described the assault as a โ€œscene of terror,โ€ part of the groupโ€™s sustained campaign of violence against Christian communities in the region since 2017. To read the full article, click the link below:

A Catholic church in northern Mozambique was targeted in an attack by the Islamic State group that has carried out attacks against Christians and Muslims in the country since 2017.

๐Œ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐š๐œ๐ž '๐ ๐ซ๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฌ๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฆ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐š๐ง ๐œ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ'๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐ถโ„Ž๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘Ž๐‘› ๐‘‡๐‘œ๐‘‘๐‘Ž๐‘ฆThree years after deadly sectar...
05/14/2026

๐Œ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐š๐œ๐ž '๐ ๐ซ๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฌ๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฆ๐š๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐š๐ง ๐œ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ'
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐ถโ„Ž๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘Ž๐‘› ๐‘‡๐‘œ๐‘‘๐‘Ž๐‘ฆ

Three years after deadly sectarian violence erupted in Indiaโ€™s Manipur state in 2023, Christians from the predominantly Kuki-Zo community continue to face a grave and escalating humanitarian crisis. The clashes, in which Hindu Meitei groups targeted Kuki-Zo areas, left at least 258 people dead, thousands of homes destroyed, and nearly 59,000 people still living in relief camps as of March 2026. Despite the violence subsiding, ethnic divisions remain entrenched through government-controlled buffer zones, with Christian leaders criticizing the lack of accountability, justice for victims of murder and sexual violence, and obstacles preventing displaced Christians from returning to their homes and places of worship. Click Link below to read the full article:

Three years on the crisis is far from over.

๐’๐œ๐š๐ฆ ๐€๐ฐ๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ง๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ˆ๐ง๐Ÿ๐จ ๐–๐จ๐ซ๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ฉ (๐…๐จ๐ซ ๐ซ๐ž๐Ÿ๐ฎ๐ ๐ž๐ž ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ & ๐ง๐ž๐ฐ๐œ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ)๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐‘€๐‘Ž๐‘ฆ 5, 2026๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘…๐‘†๐‘‡๐‘ƒ- ๐‘Ÿ๐‘’๐‘“๐‘ข๐‘”๐‘’๐‘’ ๐‘ ...
05/05/2026

๐’๐œ๐š๐ฆ ๐€๐ฐ๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ง๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ˆ๐ง๐Ÿ๐จ ๐–๐จ๐ซ๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ฉ (๐…๐จ๐ซ ๐ซ๐ž๐Ÿ๐ฎ๐ ๐ž๐ž ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ & ๐ง๐ž๐ฐ๐œ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ)
๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐‘€๐‘Ž๐‘ฆ 5, 2026
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘…๐‘†๐‘‡๐‘ƒ- ๐‘Ÿ๐‘’๐‘“๐‘ข๐‘”๐‘’๐‘’ ๐‘ ๐‘๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘ ๐‘œ๐‘Ÿ๐‘ โ„Ž๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘›๐‘’๐‘ค๐‘ ๐‘™๐‘’๐‘ก๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘Ÿ

Refugee Sponsorship Training Program (RSTP) is hosting a free virtual Info Session on Scam/Fraud Awareness and Prevention on Tuesday, May 6, 2026, from 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM EST (11:00 AM โ€“ 12:30 PM PST). This national workshop is designed for private sponsorship groups and refugee newcomers across Canada to learn how to recognize and protect themselves from increasingly sophisticated scams, especially those involving artificial intelligence. The session will feature a guest speaker from MOSAIC, practical prevention strategies, interactive activities, and a Q&A period.
Click the link below to register and for more information:

RSTP will be hosting a virtual Info Session on May 6, 2026 (2:00 pm EST/11:00 am PST to 3:30 pm EST/12:30 pm PST) for all private sponsorship groups on the topic of Scam/Fraud Awareness and Prevention. Scams and fraud are becoming more sophisticated, especially with the rise of artificial intelligen...

๐‘๐ž๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐ž๐๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐š๐ง๐ž๐ฅ ๐–๐š๐ซ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐€๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค๐ฌ ๐€๐ ๐š๐ข๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐‚๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐š๐ฅ ๐€๐Ÿ๐ซ๐ข๐œ๐š๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐ด๐‘๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘™ 02, 2026๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘๐‘Ž๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘Ž๐‘™ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž...
04/02/2026

๐‘๐ž๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐ž๐๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐š๐ง๐ž๐ฅ ๐–๐š๐ซ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐€๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค๐ฌ ๐€๐ ๐š๐ข๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐‚๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐š๐ฅ ๐€๐Ÿ๐ซ๐ข๐œ๐š
๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐ด๐‘๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘™ 02, 2026
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘๐‘Ž๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘Ž๐‘™ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘™๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘…๐‘’๐‘”๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘Ÿ

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has raised urgent concerns over escalating attacks by the Islamic State-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) against Christian communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In its March 31 report, USCIRF highlighted a sustained pattern of violence in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, including the brutal February 2026 massacre of around 70 civilians in a Christian villageโ€”where men, women, children, and the elderly were beheadedโ€”as well as repeated assaults on churches, prayer meetings, and villages since 2024. These attacks have killed dozens, triggered mass displacement, forced some churches to close, and spread widespread fear among believers. The commission called for stronger security measures, accountability, and civilian protection to safeguard religious freedom in the region, while Congolese Catholic bishops pledged not to remain silent amid the worsening crisis. To read more click on the link below:

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) sounded the alarm over Islamic State groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo after escalating violence against Christians.

๐Ÿ๐Ÿ• ๐ค๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ž๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ž๐ฏ๐š๐ฌ๐ญ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ข๐ ๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐š ๐จ๐ง ๐๐š๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐’๐ฎ๐ง๐๐š๐ฒ๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐ด๐‘๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘™ 01, 2026๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘๐‘Ž๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘Ž๐‘™ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘™๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘…๐‘’๐‘”๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘ŸAt leas...
04/01/2026

๐Ÿ๐Ÿ• ๐ค๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ž๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ž๐ฏ๐š๐ฌ๐ญ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ข๐ ๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐š ๐จ๐ง ๐๐š๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐’๐ฎ๐ง๐๐š๐ฒ
๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐ด๐‘๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘™ 01, 2026
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘๐‘Ž๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘Ž๐‘™ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘™๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘…๐‘’๐‘”๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘Ÿ

At least 27 people were killed on Palm Sunday when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a popular gathering spot in the mostly Christian community of Angwan Rukuba, Jos, in Nigeriaโ€™s Plateau State. The attack, which occurred around 8 p.m. on March 29, left 14 dead at the scene and 13 others dying later in hospital. In response, the Plateau State government imposed a 48-hour curfew and Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang strongly condemned the โ€œbarbaric and unprovoked attack,โ€ pledging to bring the perpetrators to justice. The incident has heightened fears in the region already plagued by recurring violence, coming just over a week after deadly su***de attacks in Maiduguri, Borno State. The University of Jos has postponed exams as a result of the insecurity. To read more click on the link below:

Please pray for all those affected by another attack in Nigeria, this time on a popular gathering spot in a predominantly Christian community in Plateau State.

๐’๐ฒ๐ซ๐ข๐šโ€™๐ฌ ๐‚๐ก๐ฎ๐ซ๐œ๐ก๐ž๐ฌ ๐’๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐ž ๐๐š๐œ๐ค ๐„๐š๐ฌ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐‚๐ž๐ฅ๐ž๐›๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐€๐Ÿ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐€๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค ๐จ๐ง ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง ๐“๐จ๐ฐ๐ง๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐ด๐‘๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘™ 01, 2026๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘๐‘Ž๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘Ž๐‘™ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘ก...
04/01/2026

๐’๐ฒ๐ซ๐ข๐šโ€™๐ฌ ๐‚๐ก๐ฎ๐ซ๐œ๐ก๐ž๐ฌ ๐’๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐ž ๐๐š๐œ๐ค ๐„๐š๐ฌ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐‚๐ž๐ฅ๐ž๐›๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐€๐Ÿ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐€๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค ๐จ๐ง ๐‚๐ก๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ง ๐“๐จ๐ฐ๐ง
๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐ด๐‘๐‘Ÿ๐‘–๐‘™ 01, 2026
๐‘†๐‘œ๐‘ข๐‘Ÿ๐‘๐‘’: ๐‘๐‘Ž๐‘ก๐‘–๐‘œ๐‘›๐‘Ž๐‘™ ๐ถ๐‘Ž๐‘กโ„Ž๐‘œ๐‘™๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘…๐‘’๐‘”๐‘–๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘Ÿ

Following a violent assault on the predominantly Christian town of Al-Suqaylabiyah in Syriaโ€™s Hama countryside on March 27, local residents and church leaders have expressed deep concern over security failures and rising sectarian tensions. Armed groups from outside the town carried out widespread vandalism, theft, and destruction of property, prompting protests demanding accountability, compensation, and rejection of a โ€œsingle-color armyโ€ dominated by one group. In response to the incident and the fragile security situation, Syriaโ€™s Christian communities โ€” including the Melkite Greek Catholic and Greek Orthodox Patriarchates โ€” have scaled back Holy Week and Easter celebrations to prayers inside churches only, while strongly condemning the attack and calling for a full investigation, disarmament of non-state actors, and equal protection for all citizens. Click the link below to read the full article:

After an assault on Al-Suqaylabiyah, questions linger over security and accountability, causing Syriaโ€™s Christian communities to change Holy Week and Easter services.

๐‚๐š๐ง๐œ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐Ž๐‘๐€๐“ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” ๐†๐ž๐ง๐ž๐ซ๐š๐ฅ ๐๐ฎ๐›๐ฅ๐ข๐œ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐š๐ฆ๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐‘€๐‘Ž๐‘Ÿ๐‘โ„Ž 12, 2026Recent announcements from Immigration, Refugees an...
03/12/2026

๐‚๐š๐ง๐œ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐Ž๐‘๐€๐“ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” ๐†๐ž๐ง๐ž๐ซ๐š๐ฅ ๐๐ฎ๐›๐ฅ๐ข๐œ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐š๐ฆ
๐‘ƒ๐‘œ๐‘ ๐‘ก๐‘’๐‘‘: ๐‘€๐‘Ž๐‘Ÿ๐‘โ„Ž 12, 2026

Recent announcements from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) as part of the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan have further reduced targets across various immigration streams, including the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program (PSRP). The plan sets privately sponsored refugee admissions at 16,000 for 2026 (down from higher previous targets), while the overall SAH Global Cap has been significantly loweredโ€”reportedly to around 5,000 persons for all Sponsorship Agreement Holders combined. This reflects persistent challenges: demand for private sponsorship continues to far exceed available spaces, contributing to a substantial application backlog and prolonged processing times.

As a result, allocation spots for Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAHs), including ORAT, have been drastically reduced for 2026. This leaves us with no choice but to extend the suspension of our General Public Program, which was intended to assist members of the public in sponsoring refugee relatives in need of resettlement to Canada.

We are currently managing a large volume of active sponsorship applications for 2026, as well as numerous files in various stages of review and processing submitted by our established Constituent Group Partner Organizations (CGPOs). Our priority remains supporting these long-standing partners as we adapt to the evolving government immigration framework and work to clear existing commitments.

We sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding during this difficult time. For those still exploring sponsorship opportunities, we recommend contacting other Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAHs) in your region. A list of SAHs is available here: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/refugees/sponsor-refugee/private-sponsorship-program/agreement-holders/holders-list.html

Note that certain PSR streams (such as Groups of Five and Community Sponsors) remain under a temporary pause on new intake until December 31, 2026, as announced by IRCC, further limiting options in the current landscape. We will continue to monitor updates from IRCC and share any changes that may affect future programs.

Find a list of sponsorship agreement holders (SAHs) in Canada who are approved to sponsor refugees. Search by province, city, or organization name.

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