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World News

Attacks on Christians up in the last four years

by Aaron James

Open Doors says every month 322 Christians are persecuted, 214 churches and religious buildings are destroyed, and there are 772 acts of violence.

Their figures are likely to be significantly lower than the numbers in reality, given the number of incidents which do not receive police, charity or media attention.

Open Doors produces a list of countries each year where Christian persecution is the most severe. North Korea has topped it for the last 16 years.

The figures come as both the UK Prime Minister and American President highlight the suffering of believers in some countries across the world.

On Palm Sunday 45 people were murdered in Egypt, many of them Christians, after two separate suicide bomb attacks at different churches in the country.

Bishop Graham Kings, Mission Theologian for the Anglican Communion, told Sky News: "We're living in a time of unprecedented persecution and martyrdom. In fact in the 20th Century, there were more religious martyrs, than the whole of previous Christian history. I think the rise of Isis has contributed to it.

"Prayer covers the whole world and when people try to kill Christians, the whole Christian world is backing those being persecuted."

 
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