Release International, a charity which serves the persecuted church around the world, forecasted that there will be rise in violent persecution of Christians in 2017.
According to a report explaining the details, the shocking increase is expected to be in Islamic world, where Christians will find themselves at even greater risk of persecution from both the Islamic militants and the state.
India and China are noted to be the two countries which are expected to increase the numbers of in persecutions of Christians.
In China, Christianity is banned outside of state-controlled churches and the government has torn down thousands of church crosses, citing safety safety concerns. Lawyers defending Christians have also been imprisoned, a source media reported.
"Around the world Christians face an increasing array of violent persecutors. These include the brutal Islamic State in the Middle East, heavily armed militants in Nigeria and Hindu extremists in India," Paul Robinson, chief executive, "Our report on the likely trends of persecution in 2017 is a wake-up call to take our prayers and practical support for our persecuted family to a new level."
"Christians in Pakistan are considered third-class citizens," says a Release partner. "In 2017 we will face more discrimination, forced conversions and forced marriages."
"There's a group in India called the Religious Liberty Commission of the Evangelical Fellowship of India... they recorded in the first half of 2016 alone 134 attacks on Christians or churches. That number is close to the total combined number for 2014 and 2015 alone and the context of this has been a rise in militant Hinduism," Andrew Boyd, from Release said. "It's a thinking which says that to be an Indian is to be Hindu and nothing else can be tolerated, that is leading to... a fairly dramatic increase in the number of attacks against Christians happening there."
"It's very easy to dismiss these things as happening to people you don't know of in countries you've never visited... but Hebrews 13:3, says remember those who're in prison or who're suffering as though you yourself were there with them," he added.
