Islamic “terrorist groups” have stepped up “their rampage of death and destruction” across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) over the past year while “increasingly targeting children” from Christian communities “to use them as weapons for war and abuse,” according to new findings by a Christian advocacy group.

Nigerian police have confirmed that a large group of Christian worshippers were kidnapped by suspected Muslim gunmen from three churches in a remote area of Nigeria’s northern Kaduna State, reversing an earlier denial that authorities said had been “widely misinterpreted.”

The era of foreign missionaries in Turkey is drawing to a close as authorities increasingly detain, deport, or bar Christian workers from reentering the Muslim-majority nation, according to church leaders and human-rights advocates.

A record 388 million Christians faced persecution and were at risk of violence worldwide over the past year—eight million more than in previous periods—according to new findings by Christian charity Open Doors.

There was mounting concern Monday over the fate of an Egyptian Christian who hosts a channel on the video-sharing platform YouTube, after authorities sentenced him to five years of hard labor for content that rights groups say defended Christianity online.

The wife and daughter of a late Anglican priest who died in captivity have regained their freedom after nearly three months in the hands of kidnappers, as concern mounted Monday over the abductions of more than 150 worshippers in coordinated attacks on churches in northern Nigeria, officials and sources said.

Iran’s Islamic rulers have jailed more Christians amid a brutal crackdown on nationwide protests that a network of Iranian doctors says has killed up to 18,000 people.

A Protestant pastor held in incommunicado detention for almost six months in Nicaragua has been released, Christians confirmed Thursday.

Christian advocacy groups urged U.S. President Donald J. Trump not to close America’s doors to Christian refugees from Pakistan, citing cases of bonded labor, abduction, and alleged misuse of blasphemy laws targeting the country’s Christian minority.

Christian activists say religious freedom is under “unprecedented threat” in China and India, citing a sharp escalation in government actions and extremist violence targeting believers.

Christians across Colombia expressed deep shock and grief after church officials confirmed that a prominent evangelical pastor was shot and killed during New Year’s celebrations in the country’s Caribbean region.

Bible sales reached historic highs in both the United Kingdom and the United States in 2025, according to newly released industry data, pointing to a growing re-engagement with Christian faith amid global uncertainty.

Dutch police detained controversial Christian preacher Tom de Wal late Friday after he proceeded with a banned prayer-healing service in the southern Dutch city of Tilburg, authorities said.

Chinese authorities have detained Protestant church leaders and demolished church property as part of a “widening crackdown on underground churches” that refuse to align with Communist Party ideology, Christian sources say.

There was mounting concern Thursday about the plight of Christians still staying in war-torn Syria after fighting escalated in the northern city of Aleppo, killing several people and prompting tens of thousands to flee their homes.

New Year celebrations for Pakistan’s Christian minority have been overshadowed by the killing of a Christian father of three, the vandalism of a church, and renewed fears that strict Islamic blasphemy laws could fuel further violence against religious minorities.

At least 11 Christians were killed and 18 others seriously wounded when a drone operated by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) struck civilians traveling to Christmas celebrations in South Kordofan state on Dec. 25, according to local sources.

A Christian pastor was seriously injured after being attacked by a group of Muslim assailants wielding sharp objects in eastern Uganda, according to an exclusive report by Morning Star News.

Tensions remained high Monday in southern Laos after villagers armed with hammers and knives destroyed Christian homes and local authorities tied a pastor to a pole for preaching the Gospel, Christians said.

Tens of thousands of Christians have been celebrating Christmas and the New Year in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, defying concerns about rising Islamic extremism in the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation.