4/24/2025 Nigeria (International Christian Concern) — As the persecution of Christians throughout the world continues to grow, mainstream reporting of it is conspicuously missing.
The slaughter of Christ followers in Nigeria is hurtling toward genocide levels, and thousands of Christians the world over remain imprisoned simply for their faith. Yet, their stories are rarely told on the evening news.
In 2024, Genocide Watch reported that “since 2000, 62,000 Christians in Nigeria have been victims of genocide perpetrated by Islamist extremist groups.” And the extreme abuse of Christians in the Sub-Saharan nation shows no sign of slowing down. On April 13, Palm Sunday, Islamist extremists murdered 54 Christians, and during the season of Lent and Easter, at least 170 Christians lost their lives. In March, a congressional hearing was held to discuss the ongoing atrocities being committed against Christians in Nigeria.
Tony Perkins, former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), spoke during the proceedings.
“As a former USCIRF chair, I can verify that many Western news outlets, taking their cues from the previous administration, continue to overlook the accelerating violence and bloodshed currently taking place in Africa, which is perpetrated mainly by radical Islamist groups,” Perkins stated. “In Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, vicious attacks and bloodshed continue to surge, week after week, month after month. Christians are the primary targets of this terrorism, facing murders, rapes, kidnappings, and constant threats.”
Iran, Pakistan, and Vietnam, to name a few, imprison Christ followers with total disregard for human rights. And according to Open Doors, 4,744 Christians were imprisoned or detained throughout the world for their faith in 2024 alone.
As Christians languish in prison for years, many suffer in silence as mainstream news outlets continue to deprioritize their plight.
Even countries that are not traditionally known for persecution have begun to discriminate against Christians and their points of view. In England, a woman was arrested in 2022 for silently praying in a “buffer zone” near an abortion clinic. And, in Finland, a woman was investigated for several years, starting in 2019, and brought to trial for “hate speech” after she publicly expressed her views on biblical sexuality.
Many factors, like dictatorial paranoia, Islamic extremism, communism, anti-blasphemy laws, and the censoring of religious information, have played a role in the maltreatment of Christians. Yet, the mainstream global spotlight on their suffering is dim to non-existent.
The murder, discrimination, and persecution of Christians is an all-out attack on human rights. The fact that it’s largely ignored causes society to become numb to the loss of sacred liberties. In looking the other way and minimizing the abuse of Christ followers, the global stage becomes callous to censorship and the loss of freedom itself.
And if that doesn’t set off alarm bells, what will?
To read more news stories, visit the ICC Newsroom. For interviews, please email press@persecution.org.
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