The cause of Christians striving to practise their faith without fear or pressure often advances and retreats in countries outside those where Christians directly live under the most oppression. In London, New York, Strasbourg, Washington, and other centres of deliberation, important developments happen concerning Christians and religious freedom more broadly. This is the page where we consolidate news with an international scope.
Anti-religion hostility rose worldwide in 2012, study says
The world became generally more hostile to religious believers of all faiths, Christianity included, in 2012, according to a major annual report issued Jan. 14. Christians were harassed in more countries than followers of other faiths, though pressure on Muslims and Jews was widespread globally, according to the study, conducted […]
Pressure on Christians grew in 2013
More than ever, some of the hardest places for Christians to live are fragile or failed states where militant Islamist movements flourish, according to an annual report on Christian religious freedom. Pressure on Christians intensified worldwide in 2013, according to Open Doors International, a charity that provides support to Christians […]
Christian deaths double in 2014 World Watch List
Nearly twice as many Christians died for their faith in the past year than in 2012, according to Open Doors International’s 2014 World Watch List. Open Doors International, a charity that supports Christians under pressure for their faith, said 2,123 Christians were reported to have been killed during the 12 […]
UK Parliament is told Christianity is ‘most persecuted religion’
The Bishop Moussa Coptic Church in Minya was destroyted by pro-Morsi supporters in Egypt, many of whom blamed Christians for his overthrow.David Degner, Getty Images The plight of Christians around the world was discussed in a three-hour debate at the Houses of Parliament in London yesterday. Members of the […]
Book review: ‘The Global War on Christians’
It has been an astonishing last 12 months for books on the persecution of Christians when there has been such silence on the issue for so long. First came ‘Christianophobia: A Faith Under Attack’ in late 2012; then the more simply titled, ‘Persecuted: the Global Assault on Christians’ in March […]
Number of Christian martyrs continues to cause debate
Ninety-six Christians died in the twin attacks on All Saints Church in Peshawar.World Watch Monitor The debate over the precise number of Christians martyred each year continues. In May, a Vatican spokesman told the United Nations Human Rights Council that as many as 100,000 Christians are martyred each year. […]
EU Parliament pleads for Christian safety
The European Parliament has gone on record condemning violence against Christians in several countries. In a resolution passed on Thursday, Oct. 10, the parliament: Condemned militant attacks on Christians in Syria, and called for protection of monasteries and humanitarian support for nuns and orphans; Condemned the Sept. 22 bombing attack […]
Church wants political Syria solution
Church leaders from Syria, Russia, the US, UK, France, Germany and Turkey have called for a political solution as the only way to peace in Syria. They met the UN Secretary General and his Special Envoy to Syria on the same day that Syria’s Deputy Prime Minister said that the […]
‘Persecuted: The Global Assault on Christians’
This is a book designed to show that “Christians are the single most widely persecuted religious group in the world today” (p4). With that aim, three authors well known in the field of religious advocacy give the reader the ultimate global briefing on the causes, patterns and trends in the persecution […]
Africa rises on World Watch List of worst persecutors
Africa, where Christianity spread fastest during the past century, now is the region where oppression of Christians is spreading fastest, a new report says. The two-year-old Arab Spring has toppled autocrats across Northern Africa, but it also has energized militant Islamist movements that have killed hundreds of Christians and endanger […]