Open Doors Releases Report Where Christians Face Most Persecution
By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Correspondent
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Worthy News)– Open Doors has just released the “Top Ten” countries where Christians are most persecuted for their faith.
Not surprisingly, Nigeria tops the list; from November 2012 to March 2014 there were more than 2,000 Christian martyred in the West African state.
“The alarming trend of violence against Christians in Nigeria over the past months highlights the lack of religious freedom they have and the daily dangers they face from the Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram and other violent Islamic organizations,” said Open Doors President (USA) David Curry. “Going to school, attending church or identifying yourself as a Christian is a very brave decision in Nigeria. It is turning into a bloodbath.”
The rest of the “Top Ten” countries are: Syria, Egypt, Central African Republic, Mexico, Pakistan, Colombia, India, Kenya and Iraq. For the majority of these nations, Islamic extremism fueled most of the persecution of Christians.
“Islamic extremism, tribal antagonism and organized corruption are the main persecution engines fueling violence, with Islamic extremism being the major engine in seven of the Top Ten countries,” said Frans Veerman, director of World Watch Research.
In all countries where Christians were persecuted, there was a total of 13,120 documented acts of violence that included beatings, abductions, rapes, arrests and forced marriages.
Note, however, that this latest “Top Ten” list is not the same as Open Doors’ World Watch list of countries that was topped by North Korea, the “hermit kingdom” where thousands of Christians and political prisoners are routinely starved, abused and tortured.
Download the Full Report