Christians are most persecuted group in the world, study says

One third of the world suffers from religious persecution, and Christians as the most persecuted of religious groups, are at risk of disappearing. These are were among the grim conclusions of a report commissioned by British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt on the extent of global anti-Christian persecution.The Anglican Bishop of Truro, the Right Rev. Philip Mounstephen, who conducted the independent review at the request of the government, found that “evidence shows not only the geographic spread of anti-Christian persecution, but also its increasing severity. In some regions, the level and nature of persecution is arguably coming close to meeting the international definition of genocide, according to that adopted by the UN.”

Drawing on research conducted by Pew Research, and the NGOs Aid to the Church in Need and Open Doors, the report found that “the eradication of Christians and other minorities on pain of ‘the sword’ or other violent means was revealed to be the specific and stated objective of extremist groups in Syria, Iraq, Egypt, north-east Nigeria and the Philippines.“

In certain parts of the world, Christianity is at risk of disappearing altogether, the report stated, as the “main impact of such genocidal acts against Christians is exodus.”

Evidence of a dwindling Christian presence includes, is most evident in the Middle East, where the report noted that Christianity is in danger of being wiped out “where its roots go back furthest”:

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See also: “Rarely reported by media anymore”: persecution of Christians, March 2019, by Raymond Ibrahim, Gatestone Institute

Churches reopen in Sri Lanka four weeks after Easter Day bombings, from Barnabas Fund

And our collection of articles following the Sri Lanka Easter massacres: Christians targeted for their faith