North Korea is again number one on the World Watch List: the place where Christians face the most persecution for following Jesus. The persecution score of 98/100 is the highest a country has ever received in World Watch List research.
Around the world, 5,621 Christians were killed for their faith last year. That’s approximately 15 a day. Of these, 89% were in Nigeria (6) – a shocking 5,014 believers were murdered in the country where violence continues to escalate.
In the past year, more than 2,000 churches and church buildings were attacked, looted or forcibly closed. Almost half of these were in China (16). Many believers continue to meet in house churches or secretly, to continue worshipping Jesus together.
Around 140,000 Christians were displaced from their home or country for faith-related reasons in the past year – not including all those who were displaced for other reasons. The majority of these are from Myanmar (15).
The region that has seen the sharpest increase in persecution is Latin America, with four countries rising substantially. Mexico (38), Colombia (22), Cuba (27)have all risen, and Nicaragua (50) is in the top 50 for the first time.
Along with Nicaragua, the other country entering the top 50 is Comoros – which has risen 11 places on the World Watch List. The nation has seen a rise in incidents of violence, and increased pressure from government and in local communities.
Violence against Christians in sub-Saharan Africa has hit new heights as jihadists seek to make Africa the first Islamic continent. This is already having catastrophic consequences for the church – and the risks may yet worsen.
Across the 26 nations that recorded at least high levels of persecution against Christians, the number of violent attacks experienced by believers rose by five per cent. In half of these countries, including Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Niger and Mozambique, the levels of violence hit extremely high levels.
Persecution of Christians in Nigeria has reached unprecedented levels. Islamic jihadist violence used to be contained largely to the north and central areas of the country, but has now spread further south and is causing widespread devastation and trauma to Christian communities.
Another trend centres on China, who are leading subtle attempts to redefine human rights not in terms of dignity and worth, as it’s been classically understood, but as the ‘right’ to development and happiness. It may seem a subtle shift, but it represents a damaging move towards widespread authoritarianism.
This is the backdrop to the Chinese authorities tightening their grip on Christians, who are seen as a particular threat to President Xi Jinping’s hold on power. In March 2022, draconian laws were introduced that require a permit to share religious material on the internet – and this is only given to state-approved religious organisations, such as the Three-Self Patriotic Movement.
All of this is enforced by the country’s increasingly sophisticated use of surveillance. Sharing ‘illegal’ content such as sermons and podcasts, even on social media, is highly risky. Where China leads, others follow. This toxic mixture of authoritarianism, nationalism and technology has been adopted by other countries like India, Russia and Turkey, with many other nations not far behind. This is a deeply alarming trend for millions of believers across the world.
In many ways, the redefinition of human rights is already emerging in the Middle East, with many believers, especially converts from Islam, deemed troublemakers and labelled a threat to national security. A case in point is Iran, where house churches are regularly raided and Christians sent to prison on loosely defined charges.
It’s not the only risk facing Christians in the region. In places like Iraq (18) and Syria (12), the number of believers has not recovered from the conflicts of the past decade, during which many believers were among those who fled the region. Unemployment among young Christians is high, while children are vulnerable to bullying from peers and teachers at school. Syria is rarely in the news today but conflict persists – last year, dozens of churches and Christian buildings were damaged in attacks by Turkish armed forces and at least five Christians kidnapped.
The challenges reinforce the importance of Open Doors’ Hope for the Middle East campaign, and 160 Centres of Hope have been established so far in Iraq and Syria, thanks to the prayers and giving of Open Doors supporters. These are enabling many believers to remain in, or return to, the region and have hope for the future.
The stories from the World Watch List can feel overwhelming – and it may seem like the situation is getting harder for Christians everywhere. While persecution is increasing overall, there are places where the reverse is true. In 2022, persecution became less severe in Qatar (which fell 16 places in the World Watch List) and Egypt (which fell 15 places). There were smaller drops in persecution score for Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Vietnam, Laos, Oman and Jordan. While these numbers aren’t enormous, each change for the better represents answers to prayer – and Christians who were able to follow Jesus a little more freely than the previous year.
Afghanistan (9) also dropped several places on the World Watch List – this is largely because, in the past year, the Taliban has turned their attention to consolidating power and have not been explicitly targeting non-Muslims. This means there have been fewer violent incidents against Christians that can be clearly linked to their faith. In this complex situation, persecution is affecting almost everyone in many different ways.
A couple of years ago, Sri Lanka was at number 30 on the World Watch List – because of the Easter church bombings in which more than 250 people were killed. The nation has continued to fall down the World Watch List, and is now outside of the top 50 at number 62. This is an encouraging answer to the prayers of Sri Lankan believers and those who support them.
Despite persecution, God is still in control – and more and more people are choosing to follow Him. Even in countries where persecution is rife, people are coming to faith and taking extraordinary risks to be Christians. We know that churches that actively share the gospel are often targets for attack and discrimination, but that God has the ultimate victory, and He says, “I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)
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