Christian persecution reached an unprecedented scale worldwide in 2025. The findings of Open Doors US annual World Watch List show that the 388 million Christians facing high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith — more than one in seven — marks an increase of more than 8 million over the previous year. Ryan Brown, CEO of Open Doors US, said there are multiple dynamics at play beneath the surface of such trends, but noted there is “expansion of the levels of really extreme violence that are taking place.” He added that much of it is concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, which is home to 14 countries on the watch list.
Nigeria is “at the center of a lot of the things going on,” and is the primary hotspot for deadly violence, accounting for the most faith-related killings globally. This region of more than 720 million people, nearly half of whom are Christian, remains a critical area of concern. Of the 4,849 Christians killed worldwide for their faith, 3,490 were Nigerian, which is an increase from 3,100 last year.
Somalia landed as the second-most dangerous country for Christians for the fourth consecutive year. Aweis Ali, son of a Muslim cleric and a convert to Christianity, recounted the violence Christians face there. “Somali Christians are among the most extremely persecuted in the world,” he said. “You could be sitting in a cafeteria, enjoying your meal, and somebody could come and attempt to decapitate you, to cut your head off.”
Syria is also highlighted. It achieved its highest-ever score on the ranking system after experiencing the most significant single-year increase in Christian persecution recorded by any country since the nonprofit's ranking methodology began in 2014. Intensified pressures on the Christian community amid ongoing conflict has lingered on for more than a decade. The militant Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, which took power after the Assad regime collapsed, at first engaged in dialogue. They expressed that Syrians “could worship freely and different faith persuasions would have a seat at the table,” Brown said. “While we haven't necessarily seen the difficulties at the hand of the central government, we have seen, due to the weak rule of law, that there have been vacuums of power that have been created throughout the country, and extremists have stepped into those vacuums,” he said. Brown added that Christians are suffering elsewhere because of similar examples of extremists filling a power vacuum.
The World Watch List is not just an informational resource, but also a prayer resource. Persecuted Christians are asking fellow believers around the world to pray for them. The list offers specific prayer points for each of the 50 countries that are detailed. “These are prayer points that our brothers and sisters on the ground have told us … the things that they are praying for,” explained Brown.
PRAY: Let us pray and intercede on behalf of our fellow believers experiencing terrible persecution and even death.