Barnabas Fund has asked Christians to pray for believers in parts of Asia, Africa and the Arab world who came under attack over the Christmas and New Year period.

The ministry, which supports the persecuted church, said the level of violence against Christian minorities over the festive season had been “shocking”. It believes the attacks were timed deliberately to coincide with the Western Christmas Day on 25 December and the Eastern Christmas Day on 7 January.

At least three Christians were killed last month when two car bombs exploded near churches in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.

The minister of one of the churches told Barnabas Fund: “Words cannot describe what has happened … but we will pray in the streets, in homes, in shops. God is everywhere, not just in churches.”

In Iran, police officers raided a Christmas celebration being held by 70 converts from Islam, arresting two of the leaders, while in Indonesia, a mob of motorcyclists attacked a new church building in Bekasi Regency, near the capital Jakarta.

Barnabas Fund said tension was extremely high in Iran and parts of Iraq because the main Shia festival of Ashura fell just two days after Christmas Day, on 27 December. In Basra, Shia Muslims warned Christians not to celebrate Christmas in any other way than by attending church, the ministry said.

Christians in Pakistan were also forced to hold low-key Christmas celebrations under the heavy protection of government security forces. Police had advised Christians to scale down their activities over the festive season for fear of more unrest at the end of a year blighted by deadly violence against the Christian minority.

In Algeria, Muslims twice broke up services. On 26 December, a group of around 20 Muslims reportedly blocked Christians from entering the church in Tizi-Ouzou for a Christmas service. The church came under attack again a week later when a group of Muslims burst into the service, punching the pastor. They later broke into the church, which they vandalised and set on fire.

In the last week, at least eight churches and a Christian school in Malaysia have been attacked by firebombs in the wake of a court ruling last month stating that non-Muslims were also entitled to use the word ‘Allah’ as a term for God.

Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, International Director of Barnabas Fund, said: “Times of Christian celebration often bring intensified anti-Christian violence, and in the last few weeks we have seen a surge of attacks in a wide range of countries over the Christmas period.

“Please would you uphold our fellow believers in your prayers, asking that our Lord will protect and keep them.

“Pray also that those who seek to bring terror and destruction to Christians at these special times will see the peaceful, loving and forgiving attitude of their victims and that their own hearts will be changed.”