EGN NEWS DESK
The persecution of Christians worldwide has “considerably worsened” within the final 12 months, a human rights charity has warned.
In a report printed this week, Aid to the Church in Need mentioned that Christians live beneath elevated risk of violence, discrimination and different human rights abuses.
The report analysed knowledge throughout 18 international locations of specific concern between summer season 2022 and summer season 2024. Key findings embrace a shift within the epicentre of militant Islamist violence from the Middle East to Africa, with Christians being “terrorised” by “excessive violence” for his or her religion in locations like Burkina Faso, Nigeria and Mozambique.
Authoritarian regimes like China, Eritrea, India and Iran have change into extra repressive, ensuing within the elevated focusing on of Christians as enemies of the state or their area people.
Christian youngsters, particularly women, live at elevated threat of abduction, sexual violence, pressured marriage and compelled conversion.
In some locations, Christians are being caught up within the weaponisation of laws to criminalise acts deemed disrespectful to the state faith.
Christians are being imprisoned in a variety of international locations for his or her religion, together with Eritrea, the place round 400 have been imprisoned with out trial. In Iran, Christians detained for his or her religion rose from 59 in 2021 to 166 in 2023. Estimates for the variety of Christians imprisoned in China vary from the low 1000’s to round 10,000.
In India, there was a rise in recorded assaults and different cases of persecution towards Christians, rising from 599 in 2022 to 720 the next 12 months.
In Myanmar, the navy has been accused of destroying over 200 locations of worship, together with 85 church buildings.
In some international locations, years of persecution and generally battle have led to an exodus of Christians. In Syria, it’s estimated that solely 1 / 4 of one million Christians stay, in comparison with over 1.5 million in 2011 earlier than the outbreak of the civil struggle.
In Iraq, the Christian inhabitants has dwindled from round one million 20 years in the past to fewer than 200,000 as we speak.
The report, which was launched in Parliament this week, reads, “Mass migration of Christian communities, triggered by militant Islamist assaults, has destabilised and disenfranchised them, elevating questions concerning the long-term survival of the Church in key areas.”
It additionally states: “Authoritarian regimes, together with these in China, Eritrea, India and Iran, ramped up repressive measures towards Christians, both within the title of non secular nationalism or state secularism/communism.
“The restrictions included more durable sentencing for alleged insults towards state ideology, confiscation of locations of worship, elevated arrests of clergy and laity in addition to longer intervals of detention.”
