A report from October 2026 examines how Christians were treated in 18 countries from August 2024 to June 2026.
The report revealed that persecution has increased in 55% of the countries examined, with Christians facing discrimination, violence, and restrictions on their faith. About 220 million Christians worldwide are affected, due to factors such as authoritarian governments, religious extremism, and nationalism.
Approximately 40% of Burkina Faso is reportedly under the control of Islamist militant groups. Christians have faced attacks on churches and communities; some have been coerced into adhering to the extremists’ religious practices, while others have been killed.
Mali has emerged as a center of jihadist activity in the Sahel region, making life difficult for the 2.2% of the population who are Christians. In areas controlled by extremist groups, they face religious restrictions and must pay taxes to practice their faith. Reports of church burnings have also surfaced amid the ongoing civil war.
Myanmar’s military junta has bombed and burned many churches, with over 300 damaged or destroyed. Some religious leaders have been kidnapped or forced into military service.
China’s government has intensified control over Christian groups that refuse to join state-approved churches, facing risks of harassment, arrest, and imprisonment. In September 2025, new regulations further restricted online religious content, including livestreams and children’s religious education.
Christians in Egypt face discrimination and violence, as well as challenges in obtaining church building licenses. Christian women and girls are particularly at risk of abduction and forced conversion.
In Eritrea, the government controls religious practices and restricts unrecognized Christian denominations, especially Evangelicals. In 2025, around 500 members of unregistered Evangelical communities were detained without trial, with 177 released after admitting involvement in a banned group and promising to refrain from unauthorized church activities.
In 2025, India reported over 700 incidents of violence against Christians, including assaults on churches. The violence is largely attributed to Hindu nationalist groups and laws against religious conversions. Additionally, some Christian families have been denied burial rights for their deceased loved ones.
In Indonesia, Christians are experiencing increasing threats and protests as radical Islamists exploit bureaucratic red tape to disrupt their faith practices, even in private. In late September, a machete-wielding man interrupted a prayer service with around 40 attendees, warning, “If you don’t close it, bloodshed will occur inside.”
The number of Christians arrested in Iran doubled over the past year, with 254 cases reported in 2025. Converts from Islam and members of unregistered churches are particularly at risk of arrest and accusations of threatening national security.
While many Iraqi Christians in the Kurdistan region experience relative safety, they still face harassment, violence, and discrimination, especially those who convert to Christianity. The report warns that regional instability poses a serious threat to these communities’ future.
Christians in northern Mozambique have faced violence from Islamist militants, with attacks resulting in killings, kidnappings, and the destruction of homes and churches. Since 2017, around 1,000 Christians have been killed in Cabo Delgado, including incidents of beheadings and child abductions. The jihadists aim to establish a caliphate in the region.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom reports that the regime has cracked down on freedom of religion, arresting and exiling religious leaders, canceling the legal status of religious organizations, and harassing worshippers.
Nigeria faces significant extremist violence, with various religious communities, including Christians, targeted by armed groups. Over 3.5 million people were displaced during this period, including at least one million Christians. In 2025, over 200 Christians were killed in an attack by militant Fulani herdsmen in Yelewata, Benue State.
Christianity is seen as a foreign threat in North Korea. Owning a Bible or attending religious services can lead to arrest and forced labor, with many Christians among the country’s political prisoners. North Korea has strict restrictions on religious freedom, forcing many to practice their faith in secret, often hiding their beliefs from family members.
In Pakistan, Christians face discrimination, violence, and blasphemy accusations. The report highlights the risk of Christian girls and young women being abducted, forcibly converted to Islam, and married, sometimes with local authorities’ involvement. An estimated 2,000 kidnapping cases occur each year.
Sudan’s civil war has severely impacted Christian communities, with over 100 churches damaged or destroyed and many Christians facing pressure to abandon their faith or risk starvation.
Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024, Christians in Syria have faced rising insecurity. An estimated 80% of the Christian population has declined since 2011 due to violence and poverty. In June 2025, a church attack in Damascus killed 23 people and injured 65.
In Turkey, Christians face challenges with church construction, property ownership, and religious education, including clergy training. Since 2020, over 200 foreign Christian workers have reportedly been expelled from the country.
Vietnam maintains strict state control over religious activities. Ethnic Christian groups in the highlands face particular vulnerability to persecution. Restrictive laws and pressures on religious leaders continue to limit the freedom of worship.
TOP 50 Countries in order where following Jesus costs the most:
1 NORTH KOREA
2 SOMALIA
3 YEMEN
4 LIBYA
5 SUDAN
6 ERITREA
7 NIGERIA
8 PAKISTAN
9 IRAN
10 AFGHANISTAN
11 INDIA
12 SAUDI ARABIA
13 MYANMAR
14 MALI
15 CHINA
16 MALDIVES
17 IRAQ
18 SYRIA
19 ALGERIA
20 BURKINA FASO
21 MOROCCO
22 LAOS
23 MAURITANIA
24 BANGLADESH
25 UZBEKISTAN
26 CUBA
27 CAR (Central
African Republic)
28 NIGER
29 TURKMENISTAN
30 NICARAGUA
31 MEXICO
32 OMAN
33 ETHIOPIA
34 TUNISIA
35 DRC (Democratic
Republic of the Congo)
36 BHUTAN
37 MOZAMBIQUE
38 KAZAKHSTAN
39 TAJIKISTAN
40 EGYPT
41 QATAR
42 COMOROS
43 CAMEROON
44 VIETNAM
45 TÜRKIYE
46 COLOMBIA
47 KYRGYZSTAN
48 BRUNEI
49 CHAD
50 JORDAN
The country known as the “Red Dragon” is China.
Revelation 12:3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
Revelation 12:4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.
Revelation 12:5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.
Revelation 12:6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.
Revelation 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
Revelation 12:8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
Revelation 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Revelation 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
1 Peter 3:14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
1 Peter 3:16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
1 Peter 3:17 For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
1 Peter 4:13 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
1 Peter 4:14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.
2 Timothy 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
Luke 6:22 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake.
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