The persecution of Christians worldwide has "significantly worsened" in the last year, a human rights charity has warned. 

In a report published this week, Aid to the Church in Need said that Christians are living under increased threat of violence, discrimination and other human rights abuses. 

The report analysed data across 18 countries of particular concern between summer 2022 and summer 2024. Key findings include a shift in the epicentre of militant Islamist violence from the Middle East to Africa, with Christians being "terrorised" by "extreme violence" for their faith in places like Burkina Faso, Nigeria and Mozambique. 

Authoritarian regimes like China, Eritrea, India and Iran have become more repressive, resulting in the increased targeting of Christians as enemies of the state or their local community. 

Christian children, especially girls, are living at increased risk of abduction, sexual violence, forced marriage and forced conversion. 

In some places, Christians are being caught up in the weaponisation of legislation to criminalise acts deemed disrespectful to the state religion. 

Christians are being imprisoned in a number of countries for their faith, including Eritrea, where around 400 have been imprisoned without trial. In Iran, Christians detained for their faith rose from 59 in 2021 to 166 in 2023. Estimates for the number of Christians imprisoned in China range from the low thousands to around 10,000. 

In India, there has been an increase in recorded attacks and other instances of persecution against Christians, rising from 599 in 2022 to 720 the following year. 

In Myanmar, the military has been accused of destroying over 200 places of worship, including 85 churches. 

In some countries, years of persecution and sometimes conflict have led to an exodus of Christians. In Syria, it is estimated that only a quarter of a million Christians remain, compared to over 1.5 million in 2011 before the outbreak of the civil war. 

In Iraq, the Christian population has dwindled from around a million 20 years ago to fewer than 200,000 today. 

The report, which was launched in Parliament this week, reads, "Mass migration of Christian communities, triggered by militant Islamist attacks, has destabilised and disenfranchised them, raising questions about the long-term survival of the Church in key regions."

It also states: "Authoritarian regimes, including those in China, Eritrea, India and Iran, ramped up repressive measures against Christians, either in the name of religious nationalism or state secularism/communism.

"The restrictions included tougher sentencing for alleged insults against state ideology, confiscation of places of worship, increased arrests of clergy and laity as well as longer periods of detention."