1) NORTH KOREA: Population: 20 million; 400,000 Christians
Main Religion: Atheism
Government: Dynastic Communist Dictatorship
North Korea’s persecution of Christians knows no equal,
and being a Christian there is considered one of the
worst crimes possible. North Korean communist dogma
considers religion an ‘opiate’ of the people, unless of
course that religion is the personality cult of ‘Great
Leader’ Kim Il Sung or his son, ‘Dear Leader’ Kim Jong Il.
North Korean Christians must hide their faith at all times,
and Christian parents can’t teach their faith to their
children until the kids are old enough to understand the
dangers (and for parents to be sure their kids won’t turn
them in). Just owning a Bible in North Korea is grounds
for execution or deportment to a harsh labor camp
(essentially a gulag).


2) IRAN: Population: 74.2 million; 450,000 Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Islamic Republic
There was a sharp increase in the number of Christians
arrested in Iran during 2010. Although some were later
released, pressure on the Christian church remains very
high. Many of the approximately 450,000 believers from
Muslim backgrounds live in fear of harassment by the
government.
Even worse, the regime has lost a great deal of
credibility following the social upheaval of the 2009
elections, and subsequent demonstrations. In a
transparent effort to distract attention from continuing
protests, the Iranian government has been lashing out
against Christians with even greater ferocity



3.)AFGHANISTAN: Population: 28.15 million; few Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Islamic Republic
Open Christians in Afghanistan face constant pressure
from family, society and government agents. Believers
usually keep a very low profile, and never meet together
publicly. In June 2010, the deputy secretary of
Parliament called for the execution of Christian converts,
after seeing baptisms of Afghan Christians on an Afghan
television (correction—THE Afghan television).
As a result, many Christians have gone into hiding, and,
in August 2010, the Taliban shot and killed ten
members of a Christian medical team that had been
providing eye treatment and other health care in remote
villages of northern Afghanistan.



4) SAUDI ARABIA: There is no religious freedom in the Islamic kingdom of
Saudi Arabia. Public non-Muslim worship is absolutely
forbidden, and conversion to Christianity – perceived
apostasy – is punishable by death. Most Christians there
are monitored foreign workers who are allowed to
worship privately within isolated ‘foreigner’ compounds,
and even then they sometimes face difficulty.
For example, twelve Filipino Christians and a priest were
arrested while attending a service in a private home, in
October 2010. They were verbally charged with
‘blaspheming against Islam” and cordially banned for life
from Saudi Arabia (quiet deportations are a new tactic of
the religious police – it avoids the media scrutiny that
heavy-handed arrests generate).
Saudi believers fear being open about their faith, even
with their family. There have also been reports of several
Christians being physically harmed for their faith, in
2010.



5) SOMALIA: Population: 9.1 million; very few Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Charitably described as ‘Transitional’
Somalia as a “country” has been without an effective
central government since 1991. It’s dangerous for
anyone to live there, but doubly dangerous to be a
Christian.
At least fifteen Christians were killed by Islamist
insurgents Al-Shabaab, in 2009, and they killed at least
another eight Christians, in 2010. So it’s no wonder a
quarter of all Christians have already fled the country.
The few believers remaining are heavily persecuted and
must practice their faith in secret, lest they be murdered
in front of their children, like Christian convert Osman
Abdullah Fataho.
Al-Shabaab has taken control of most of southern
Somalia, and they have a stated goal to wipe out
Christianity from all of Somalia. However, recent
indications hint they may be losing popularity.


6) YEMEN: Population: 23.6 million; very few Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Republic
Yemen’s state religion is Islam, and sharia law is the
source of all legal matters. Foreigners do have limited
religious freedom, but evangelism of any kind is strictly
prohibited. Case in point: several expatriate workers
were deported, in 2010, for discussing Christianity with
(well-meaning) Muslims who asked about it.


7) IRAQ: Population: 30.7 million; 334,000 Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Parliamentary democracy
Don’t be fooled by all those American soldiers: violence
against Christians in Iraq is on the rise, with large
numbers of believers killed and injured. ‘Targeted
killings’ of Christians in Mosul during the run-up to the
March 2010 election, led many Christians to flee their
villages and settle in the Nineveh plains. Fears of a
‘Christian ghetto’ in Baghdad were born that day. Pope
Benedict XVI even made an appeal for the safety of Iraqi
Christians during this time.
Attacks on church buildings and Christian institutions
also increased in the latter half of 2010, and at least 58
Christians were killed in a bomb attack on a Baghdad
church during an evening Mass, in October of that year.



UZBEKISTAN: Population: 27.5 million; 208,600 Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Republic
Pressure on Uzbek Christians increased last year. The
number of raids on churches spiked, and fines for illegal
religious activities now exceed 100 times the minimum
monthly wage. Short-term prison sentences (3-15 days)
are frequently meted out as a punishment for Christian
religious activities, and 27 year-old Baptist missionary
Tohar Haydarov has been sentenced to ten years’
imprisonment on (likely trumped up) drugs charges. An
appeal is being prepared for his release.
Many churches have also lost their registration and some
of their buildings in 2010 as well. Recent Christian
converts also experience job loss, beatings, social
rejection and often expulsion from the family home.



9) MALDIVES: Population: 311,000; very few Christians
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Republic
All citizens must be Muslims in Maldives, as sharia law
forbids practicing of any religion except Islam. Christian
churches are forbidden, and importing Christian
literature into the country is strictly prohibited.
New regulations governing religious practice were
unveiled by the government in 2010, and stricter
policies have been imposed on tourists after some were
discovered with Bibles. The few indigenous believers in
Maldives are isolated from one other and are closely
monitored by the law enforcement , religious authorities,
and locals.


10) LAOS: Population: 6.4 million; 200,000 Christians
Main Religion: Buddhism
Government: Communist State
The Laotian government’s attitude towards Christians is
openly hostile. Lao authorities, along with many in Lao
society, view Protestant Christianity (and Hmong
Christians in particular) as an American threat to
Communist rule. Christian churches cannot operate
freely, and Christians are restricted in their family and
community roles. Many Laotian believers endure
extreme physical and emotional pressure to abandon
their faith.

Its in situations like this you will remember to thank God you are a Nigerian. But any country that rejects muslim this way would be a target for terrorists. #Bedbugs