A new report has revealed that the persecution of Christians continues to expand worldwide, with countries like Syria, North Korea, and Nigeria driving the surge in oppression. Still, some bright spots of receding persecution have also emerged in south Asia.

This week, the religious freedom monitoring organization Open Doors released its annual World Watch List, which catalogues the countries in the world that commit the highest levels of oppression against Christians.

The report noted that over 388 million Christians currently “suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.”

It found that the total number of believers killed for their faith increased from 4,476 in 2025 to 4,849 in the 2026 reporting period, with 93% of the deaths occurring in sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of the killings are happening in Nigeria, which totaled 3,490 killings, up from 3,100 the previous year.

“There are now 14 sub-Saharan African countries on the World Watch List,” the report stated. “The combined population of these countries is more than 721 million people, nearly half of whom identify as Christian. Over the past decade, violence scores have more than doubled, with four of these countries now in the top 10.”

The report........

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