threat – SemperVerus

Violent Attacks Against Christians Spike in Europe

Violent attacks or threats against Christians and arson crimes against churches in Europe spiked sharply in 2024, according to a report by the Vienna-based Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination Against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe).

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Prayer for Church Security Team Members ]

The research shows that, while the 2,211 hate crimes targeting Christians recorded across the European continent in 2024 were a drop from the number of incidents in 2023, the nature of the crimes had grown more violent.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Terrorists Call for Attacks on Christians ]

Key findings include:

By semperverus
Posted on 02/03/202602/04/2026

Free Threat Intelligence for Your Church Security Team

Most churches are caught unaware of a growing threat against their congregants or property before it happens—an arson attempt, a direct verbal assault, a SWATting call, a protest disruption, or a “test run” by someone watching your routines.

[ Bookmark the SemperVerus CHURCH SECURITY INTELLIGENCE CLIPBOARD ]

Sheepdog Church Security Academy and its safety consultant/instructor, Kris P. Moloney, stealthily publishes the US Houses of Worship Security Brief that identifies and codifies verified incidents and hostile activity impacting houses of worship and translates it into practical posture implications for church safety teams.

Staggering Increase of Violence Against Christians: World Watch List

North Korea retains its hold as the most brutal and dangerous country for Christians, but 14 Sub-Saharan African countries (ranked in order: #2–Somalia, #4–Sudan, #5–Eritrea, #7–Nigeria, #15–Mali, #16–Burkina Faso, #21–Mauritania, #22–Central African Republic, #26–Niger, #29–Congo DR (DRC), #37–Cameroon, #39–Mozambique, #43–Comoros, and #48–Chad) comprise the global epicenter of violence against followers of Jesus, according to this year’s World Watch List, Open Doors’ annual compilation of the 50 most perilous countries for believers in Christ.

[ Read SemperVerus articles on the topic of PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS ]

The 14 countries constitute more than 721 million people, nearly half of whom identify as Christian; one of every 8 Christians in the world lives in those countries. Only three countries out of the 50 on the List have the maximum score for violence. All three of them are sub-Saharan: Sudan, Nigeria, and Mali.

Nigeria, Rwanda, China, Mozambique, and Mexico Are the Top Persecutors of Christians: GCR Red List

The organization Global Christian Relief (GCR) has published its annual report for 2026, titled Red List, revealing the top 5 worst countries for Christian persecution across five categories of concern: most arrests & sentences, assaults & abductions, killings, displacements, and destruction of buildings.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Nigeria Is Deadliest Country for Christians: GCR Red List 2025 ]

New this year is the accompanying prayer guide, which shows exactly how you can pray for the concerns and believers in each country.

[ Read SemperVerus articles on the topic of PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS ]

Nigeria leads in the category of killings, with 590 documented and verified killings (as recorded in the Violent Incidents Database) November 2023 to October 2025, according to GCR, out of the total number of 1,972 killings in the top five countries in the category. Following Nigeria are the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with 447 killings, Ethiopia with 177 killings, Russia with 167 killings, and Mozambique with 94.

[ Bookmark the SemperVerus CHURCH SECURITY INTELLIGENCE CLIPBOARD ]

US President Donald Trump added Nigeria to the US State Department’s list of Countries of Particular Concern in 2025, guilty of egregious and unchecked religious persecution, based on the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.