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Pastor Bipin Bihari Naik had just gathered with other believers for prayer in the village of Kandarsinga, Odisha State, on January 4th when a group of men burst into the home where the meeting was taking place. The men dragged the pastor outside and began to violently assault him. When Pastor Bipin's wife attempted to intervene, she was threatened with similar treatment.

On the morning of January 18th, Christians were gathered for worship in the village of Kurmin Wali, Kaduna State, when armed assailants stormed the community. The attackers raided three church buildings in the village: two congregations of the Cherubim and Seraphim Movement Church, as well as a fellowship belonging to the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA). While over 170 people were taken hostage, some of them later escaped. At the time of publishing this report, at least 163 of the kidnapped victims remain missing – all of whom are being held by their abductors presumably in an unknown location.

A Christian evangelistic team was brutally attacked in early January near the village of Korrakudu in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Not only were several believers injured during the ambush, the minibus they had been travelling in was also destroyed.

On the morning of December 6th, approximately 16 members of a church in Pasyala had gathered for a time of prayer and fasting at the home of their pastor. While they were praying together, a group of opposing neighbours – along with several other unidentified individuals – arrived at the residence. The imposing community members questioned the church secretary and the pastor's son, demanding to know whether the Christians had received an official permit to conduct worship services on the premises.

On the night of December 24th, Christians gathered for worship at a church in Mailo village, a community located in the Dosso region of Niger. At around 11 p.m., armed men stormed the church building and fired into the air, causing the worshippers to panic. As a result, all who had been attending the service fled – some escaping into the bush, while others sought refuge in neighbouring villages. Tragically, a husband and wife who hid in their home were pursued and killed by the assailants.

Anti-conversion laws in various states still present major challenges for Christians in this South Asian country. While many accusations have little to do with actual religious conversions, these laws are often used to shut down churches or punish individual believers. Additionally, such allegations frequently incite mob violence.

Unlike some nations where persecution is government-instigated, believers in Nigeria – particularly those in northern parts of the country – are at greatest risk of life-threatening attacks perpetrated by their fellow Nigerians. In previous years, Islamic militant groups (such as Boko Haram) carried out their violent raids against Christian villages with impunity. In addition to slaying many innocent inhabitants, buildings and properties within these communities were destroyed. While other terrorist groups remain a major active threat to Christians residing in Nigeria, most of the attacks reported during 2025 were carried out by militant Fulani herdsmen.

On Sunday, December 7th, armed assailants entered the St. Andrews Anglican Church in Isiokwe, Anambra State, while the priest and other congregants were preparing for morning worship. The gunmen were said to be searching for the church's priest, who was thankfully able to escape to safety. However, the priest's wife and another church member were tragically shot and killed, while several other worshippers were wounded during the indiscriminate shooting.

People around the world were shocked to hear of the recent kidnapping of more than 300 students and teachers from a Catholic boarding school in Nigeria. Thankfully, 50 of the students had escaped shortly after the abduction. (For further information on the November 21st kidnapping incident, see this report.)

Shock and grief have spread through Niger State in central Nigeria after gunmen raided a Catholic boarding school in the village of Papiri on November 21st, taking 303 students and 12 staff members captive. According to the Christian Association of Nigeria, 50 of the kidnapped students managed to escape within the first two days and have been reunited with their families, leaving 265 still missing.