Persecuted for their Christian faith

Mozambique

Violence swept through northern Mozambique one week in late November, unfolding in a series of coordinated attacks that forced tens of thousands from their homes. On Nov. 20, 2025, armed militants linked to the Islamic State Mozambique Province attacked Primeiro de Maio, a village in the Muidumbe district. Nearby villages, including Nampanha and Mapate, were also affected as fear spread rapidly through the area. By nightfall, bodies lay outside abandoned homes, and survivors had scattered into the surrounding forests or begun the long walk toward safer towns. “Thousands of families are suffering as they try to escape terrorists,” said a displaced resident who fled in terror. “Most houses have been burned, and people have been killed.”

The violence intensified in the following days. On Nov. 25, war struck again, and the perpetrators launched attacks across the Memba district in Nampula Province. In Mazua village, militants killed at least four civilians, sending waves of fear through surrounding communities. As insecurity spread, families fled in growing numbers, abandoning homes and fields. More than 80,000 people have been displaced across the Memba district alone. Attacks spread across the Eráti district, striking villages including Pavala, Sirissa, Nhage, and Nahavara. In places such as Lúrio and Mazula, homes, crops, and churches were abandoned overnight as families escaped with little more than the clothes they wore. During the week, at least 22 Christians were killed across northern Mozambique. Many left behind the only places they had ever called home, the fields they had planted season after season, and the churches that had anchored community life for generations. Those known to be Christians were especially vulnerable, their faith making them each a target.
Please Pray for peace in Mozambique, and protection especially for our Christian bros and sisters.
Source: https://persecution.org/2026/01/20/extremists-kill-22-displace-thousands-in-northern-mozambique/

Iran

As events unfold in Iran and the nation once again faces unrest, violence, and uncertainty, many believers are asking where God is at work – and how the Church should pray in moments like this. Scripture gives us profound hope for this land.   In the book of Jeremiah, God speaks of Elam – an ancient region that corresponds to modern-day Iran – declaring:“I will set My throne in Elam, and destroy her king and officials,” declares the Lord – Jeremiah 49:38.“Yet I will restore the fortunes of Elam in days to come,” declares the Lord. – Jeremiah 49:39. In this light, the Church’s perseverance and growth in Iran today reflect God’s ongoing work. Despite decades of persecution, Iran is home to one of the fastest-growing Christian movements in the world. God’s authority is made known not through political dominance but through spiritual transformation, faithful believers, underground churches, and the quiet yet powerful spread of the gospel.  
As the global Church, this is a moment to pray with both urgency and confidence.  Consider praying for:  

• God’s justice to prevail and violence against innocent people to cease.  
• Unjust leaders and systems to be dismantled according to God’s will.  
• Protection, courage, and unity among Iran’s underground believers.  
• The gospel to continue to advance, despite fear, repression, and isolation.  
• God’s restorative purposes to be revealed in His perfect timing.  
• Truth to be exposed and for justice and accountability to prevail.
• Comfort for grieving families and healing for the wounded and traumatized.
• Restored communication and the end of information blackouts.
• The Church in Iran to be strengthened, unified, fearless, and filled with hope.

Source: Christian Persecution News Persecuted Christians (ICC)

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

Terrorist groups continued their rampage of death and destruction in 2025, increasingly targeting children as weapons for war and abuse. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and the M23 group are notorious for kidnapping children from their villages and using them as child soldiers, laborers, and sexual slaves.  Many of the girls are repeatedly raped and forced into marrying militia fighters. All the children caught by the ADF are forced to accept Islam or be killed.  To build their ranks, militias teach the abducted children to use weapons and force them to steal and kill on their behalf. If they don’t comply, they’re beaten or murdered. The ADF routinely targets children from Christian communities as an attempted means of culling the Christian population and instilling fear into Christian families. Child survivors of attacks perpetrated by them have described horrific situations. In response to these atrocities, ICC is working to assist orphanages in the DRC.  One orphanage mother wrote to ICC about the children being cared for in the home.   “We are thankful to God for giving us this burden of receiving children from all over the Congo to give them a chance to live,” the caretaker stated. “All of them were rescued from villages after their parents were killed by Islamic rebels.  Others were rescued from the forest after their parents were kidnapped and later killed. Millions of children in the Congo die after their parents are killed … But all in all, we have seen the hand of God in this work, and we are determined to continue rescuing orphans of war.”  
Please Pray for the children of the Congo.

Children Abducted, Tormented as Militia Groups Terrorize the DRC  

Pakistan (great news, for once)

Christmas 2025 unfolded as an unusually grand and public affirmation of Pakistan’s Christian community, led most visibly by the Punjab government in what many have called a historic break from decades of neglect.

• Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif attended Christmas services at Lahore Cathedral, addressed worshippers, distributed grants, and announced tangible measures to improve the lives of minorities across the province.
• Army Chief Gen. Syed Asim Munir attended a full Christmas service at Christ Church in Rawalpindi, joining worshippers in singing carols and acknowledging the contributions of Christians to Pakistan’s defense and development.
• Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif hosted a Christmas ceremony at his secretariat in Islamabad, paying tribute to prominent Christian figures like Air Commodore (retired) Cecil Chaudhry and former Chief Justice A.R. Cornelius.
• Beyond official venues, the festive spirit extended into public spaces. Lahore’s Liberty Market featured a towering 42-foot Christmas tree, illuminated and admired by visitors, another rare sight that reflected a shifting public mood.

Against this backdrop, the visible participation of senior state leadership carried enormous symbolic weight. For many Christians, these gestures, though symbolic, have ignited hope. For Christians across Punjab and beyond, the declaration of Dec. 25 and 26 as public holidays, the presence of top leaders in churches, and visible government support collectively signaled something deeper than celebration. They represented recognition after decades of invisibility, dignity after years of marginalization, and hope that symbolic inclusion might one day evolve into lasting justice.
Praise God for this great news from Pakistan, and pray that this symbolic inclusion will indeed evolve into lasting peace one day.
Source:https://persecution.org/2026/01/12/pakistan-shows-surprising-respect-for-christian-community-during-christmas/