Nonprofit persecution watchdog group Open Doors US released its annual World Watch List on Wednesday, which ranks the top 50 countries where Christian persecution and discrimination are at a record high.
Fulani herdsmen in Benue state, Nigeria, killed four Christians on Monday and nine others on Jan. 5-6, sources said.
A U.S.-based nonprofit watchdog organization dedicated to tracking global Christian persecution released its latest findings documenting nearly 3,000 verified abductions and close to 2,000 killings of Christians because of religious violence worldwide over the past two years.
Two Christians in Iran sentenced to prison for their faith were locked up on Dec. 16 and 20, and a Christian woman was summoned to begin serving her five-year prison term two days before Christmas, according to an advocacy group dedicated promotion of religious freedom in Iran.
A 54-year-old Protestant pastor was shot and killed by armed men on New Year’s Eve in northern Colombia as he gathered with his family. The killing took place in the Santa Elena neighborhood of Fundación Municipality in the Magdalena Department.
A pastor came under pressure from local Muslims in Indonesia on Christmas Eve to announce that Christmas services were cancelled even though his church won approval to hold the celebrations, sources said.
A 14-year-old Christian girl was raped by a Muslim man in Pakistan earlier this month, according to her brother, who believes the assault was an act of revenge over a prior dispute.
Muslim extremists in Uganda killed an evangelist after a public Christian-Muslim dialogue event earlier this month.
Government-sponsored Christmas celebrations in Pakistan this year marked a historic departure from the country’s decades-long struggle with religious extremism — where religious minorities, including Christians, have been targeted in bombings, mob attacks and discriminatory practices.
Christians across India marked Christmas under heightened tension as Hindu nationalist groups targeted prayer services, carol singing and public festivities. Attacks and intimidation were reported from several states, including Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Chhattisgarh and Delhi during the final days of Advent.
