Governments that once ignored small Christian communities are now tightening restrictions, and believers are feeling the pressure.

So what’s behind this shift? The answer goes back several decades.

After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Central Asian nations faced a power struggle between secular and Muslim factions. Most governments ultimately leaned toward secularism, prioritizing stability and combating extremism.

“At the time, there was such a small Christian population, a majority of the extremism they were concerned about was…a radical form of Islam,” explains Eric Mock with Slavic Gospel Association (SGA).

However, the political landscape is shifting as more Muslim officials take government positions and focus pressure on Christian communities.

“A lot of what we see depends on the region and the local law enforcement,” says Mock. “You have the government policy, and then how it’s implemented locally has a lot to do with the character of the religious groups that are there and the intent of the local law enforcement.”

This year, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) called out the Central Asian countries – Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan – for using extremism laws to censor Christians and peaceful religious activities.

Also, for the first time in at least five years, all five Central Asian countries appeared on the 2025 World Watch List for Christian persecution. Kyrgyzstan previously was not ranked.

Yet, believers across Central Asia are faithful to Christ in the face of growing persecution.

“I asked them, ‘How are you holding up? How are you doing?’” shares Mock. “I get the same response – That I should not ask how they are doing. But instead, [I should] join with them and pray that God moves them to an abundant harvest.”

SGA supports Christians in Central Asia through spiritual encouragement and prayer. The ministry also offers resources such as biblical literature, trainings, and financial assistance.

Mock explains, “We get behind those who know their people the best, who love Christ and want to see more of their people won to Christ…. We support them as God leads them.”

Join SGA in praying for and supporting the Church in Central Asia! Learn more at SGA’s website.

Header image is a representative stock image courtesy of Farid Mardanov via Unsplash.

According to Pakistan’s military, security forces have freed the hostages, but 21 train passengers were killed along with four soldiers and 33 hijackers. However, as of yesterday, the BLA claims it is still active on the train and continues to hold over 100 hostages.

The Pakistan Army’s special forces soldiers in a drill conducting jointly with the Russian special forces in 2016. (Caption, photo by Mil.ru, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=52068269)

This attack is just the latest in a string of violent incidents in Balochistan, a region where the BLA has been fighting for autonomy.

Nehemiah with FMI points out this attack also highlights growing extremism in the country. According to the new Global Terrorism Index 2025, he says, “Pakistan is now ranked as the second most terrorism affected country in the world, right after Burkina Faso and before Syria, alarmingly terrorism-related deaths in Pakistan rose by 45% in 2024 alone.”

While the BLA mainly targets government forces and infrastructure, their actions also make life even more dangerous for Christians and other religious minorities who already face discrimination and persecution.

“It’s a fearful situation when these partners go in these areas and try to share the Word of God. You never know who is your enemy and who is your friend, especially in this hostile situation where terrorists are everywhere,” Nehemiah explains.

“Sadly, in Balochistan and KPK, which is a border region of Afghanistan and Iran, many cities control have been taken over by Taliban or ISIS or BLA…. So different aspects are now in Pakistan. They are [attacking] the military, mosques, and of course they are targeting Christians or minorities in Pakistan as well.”

Amazingly, Pakistani Christians are praying for terrorists, that they would know and turn to Jesus! Please pray with them.

Nehemiah says, “I was talking to a brother a few days ago, and I was like, ‘How can we pray for you?’ And he said, ‘Please pray for terrorists who are killing them and killing other Pakistanis. Please pray for them that they know the light of the message and the light of hope, which is Jesus Christ.'”

Learn more about FMI’s ministry in Pakistan.

Header photo: Pakistan flag (Photo courtesy of Abuzar Xheikh/Unsplash)

Mike with Global Catalytic Ministries says the radical love of Jesus flips the fear-based morality of Islam on its head. He has seen it happen more than once: Muslim extremists meeting their match in the extremity of Christ.

“When they taste true love, it’s just this radical heart that’s softened. And they’re a radical follower of Jesus,” he says.

But sadly, Christians don’t always approach Muslim evangelism from a loving standpoint.

“More and more I’m sensing Christians being so visceral as to how to approach these types of conversations and Muslim people themselves,” Mike says. “We get messages constantly, basically saying ‘Just kill them all.’”

Viewing Muslims, or any group of people, from this kind of oppositional standpoint is a move away from Christ’s love, forgiveness, and justification of sinners. The temptation for Western believers is either to write off Muslims as unreachable or to beat them at their own game: conquest.

“We can approach it through this Roman worldview of conquer, take land, kill people who don’t agree, and force people into submission,” Mike says. “Whereas Jesus doesn’t do that. It’s an inward transformation.”

This transformation means the old oppositional identity is gone: replaced by a new identity in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:16 reads, “So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.”

Courtesy of Rumman Amin via Unsplash

The way to make disciples differs across Islam and Christianity. Believers should have a ministry of reconciliation growing out of our identity in Christ and our love for Him. ISIS fighters, Hamas terrorists, and Taliban members are all seeking God, but they’re searching in darkness, and their methods are moralistic.

“They approach it through revolution,” Mike says. “Jesus approaches it through revelation.”

Global Catalytic Ministries works in the 10/40 window to plant Gospel seeds and disciple believers.

“We take the Joshua 5 approach,” Mike says. “We lay our lives down for our enemies. That’s the expectation of Jesus.”

As you interact with Muslims and pray for their salvation, keep this perspective in your prayers.

Please pray that God would soften many hearts – those of Islamic extremists and those of Western Christians who are called to love them. Pray that the love of Jesus would motivate ministry to Muslims, and pray that Christ would draw many souls to himself in darkest regions of the world.

Featured photo courtesy of Tayeb Mezahdia via Pexels

Last week, the armed group M23 blocked off main roads to the capital city of North Kivu province, cutting off its more than two million people from food sources. M23 is one of 120 armed groups present within the DRC.

Photo of North Kivu Province (bottom, dark red) and Ituri Province (top, bright red) courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Ben and Anna Samuelson serve with Mission Aviation Fellowship in East Congo. Ben tells us there are a multitude of reasons for the decades of violence in the DRC.

“There are still those ethnic or tribal militias or attacks that will happen against a certain other tribe. There (are) outside influencers that are trying to get access to natural resources within Congo,” Ben says.

“Congo is one of the wealthiest nations in terms of natural resources in the country, even though the people don’t ever end up seeing that wealth. But outside influencers benefit from an unstable region. There (have been) many cases of inciting militias and such to keep the region unstable for their purposes.” 

Amid lack of government support, tribes and villages create their own militias for their own causes and defense, which adds to the chaos. “Some religious extremism as well has come up and been the cause of other militia and fighting that goes on in the area,” Ben says.

The recent concentration of fighting within North Kivu may be tied to its proximity to other countries that historically have influenced the DRC, says Ben.

He adds, “With a country with as poor of (an) infrastructure as Congo, it becomes very hard to have a lot of control in the east, when all the primary governance [Kinshasa] is just under one thousand miles away in the West.”

The DRC currently has over 6.3 million displaced persons according to UNHCR. Many hope and call on President Felix Tshisekedi, who began his second term in office in January, to dramatically improve national security.

(Photo of DRC courtesy of Mission Aviation Fellowship)

“Sometimes it feels really hopeless when we read the numbers of how many displaced and how many killed,” says Anna. “(Please pray) for the elected officials, that they would have wisdom, and that they will be honest.” 

Mission Aviation Fellowship operates in Bunia, the capital city of Ituri province, which lies directly north of North Kivu and also deals with militia activity. Pray for their protection and for stability in the region.

“[Pray for the team] to not get discouraged when we hear about all this terrible stuff, but to just see the opportunities that God has placed in front of us, that this is something, this is a person that we can make a difference in their life today,” Ben says.

Header image is courtesy of MONUSCO Photos/Wikimedia Commons. 

Gathering of ISIS militants on Mali-Niger border in 2021.
(Wikimedia Commons)

The U.S. had relied on the French army to help fight growing extremism in West Africa and the Sahel.

The Sahel region had more deaths from terrorism last year than South Asia and the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) combined.

World Mission’s Greg Kelley says, “I think France’s withdrawal is disappointing. But it doesn’t have a huge impact as far as the Gospel is concerned.”

French troops were in place at Niger’s invitation, helping to control extremism. A military coup in late July followed rising anti-French sentiment.

“If you were to ask the people inside of Niger, they would say the corruption has taken over the country. Even though it’s a democracy, it’s almost like a dictatorship,” Kelley says.

“The degree of corruption and how they rule is so alarming that the people would rather have the military in control.”

As power changes hands at the government level, church planters keep their eyes on Jesus and remember their mission.

“Less than one percent of those living in Niger have received Jesus as their Lord and Savior. That needs to be the focus,” Kelley says.

Send audio Bibles and empower church planters through World Mission here.

Header image is an orthographic map showing Niger’s location in West Africa. (Wikimedia Commons) 

The West African coalition ECOWAS says it could use force against Niger if coup leaders don’t reinstate the President. Military leaders in neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso back the rebellion, saying any foreign intervention is a declaration of war.

Burkina Faso and Mali are “standing up in support of the coup because they just had military coups; they don’t want the attention drawn to them,” World Mission’s Greg Kelley says.

“Meanwhile, the West is kind of fumbling, not sure how to handle it.”

Emergency evacuations of French and other European nationals began yesterday. Plus, “a lot of countries in Europe are pulling their aid,” Kelley says.

“The tragedy of that is Niger is one of the poorest countries, not just in Africa, but in the entire world.”

Analysts say Niger stood as the West’s last hope to combat extremist expansion in the Sahel. As noted earlier this month, the new global epicenter of authoritarian rule and terrorism lies in West and Central Africa.

(Photo by Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke from Pixabay)

On July 26, presidential security forces ousted President Mohamed Bazoum, holding him captive in his home. Yesterday, military police arrested five members of Bazoum’s administration.

Today, the reality on the ground is constantly changing. “It’s a very fluid story that’s changing by the hour,” Kelley says.

“Most people living in Niger don’t even know what’s happening. They are just trying to survive the day.”

World Mission remains committed to local church partners.

“When something like this happens, it’s a real opportunity for the Body of Christ to come alongside suffering people in the name of Jesus. It gives them a platform of hope,” Kelley says.

Believers demonstrate Christ’s love by “giving them a helping hand, whether it’s food [or] water; our solar-powered audio Bibles become a real source of inspiration and blessing.”

Send help through World Mission here. Ask the Lord to sustain and strengthen Gospel workers in Niger.

In the header image, Niger’s then-Foreign Minister Mohamed Bazou speaks at a 2011 security summit, saying the Sahel has become “a powder keg” as a result of the Libya crisis. Today, Nigerien President Mohamed Bazou remains in coup leaders’ custody. (Wikimedia Commons)

“We’re having an intergenerational educational breakdown,” Houssney says. “It’s one of the main issues that lead to the extremism of a population. When kids go uneducated, they become… easy targets for terrorist extremist groups to recruit.”

How does someone go from missing out on classes to joining an extremist group?

“If you fill a child’s head with information and teach them to read and write, they can be educated, and they’ll be driven toward a career. But if you don’t, then anybody who comes along and puts… a machine gun to their head and says ‘let’s go,’ then they’re going to be compelled by that because they don’t have anything else compelling in their life.”

In other words, their options are limited. Without an education, there are very few jobs they can get – and the fact that they’re refugees makes things even worse. As Houssney puts it, they’re “stateless kids.” And when they can’t get jobs, they can’t provide for their families, which makes it harder for their families to get jobs, and so the crisis compounds. This makes young refugees easy targets for fundamentalism and exploitation.

What’s the solution? While local Lebanese schools do provide some education, Syrian refugee children can only join for the day starting in the afternoon, meaning they only get a half day of school while locals get the entire day. But even then, the teachers are often underqualified and not motivated to help. “It’s kind of like they bring in some babysitters, and they do it for a little bit of money,” Houssney says.

When those kids come to Horizons International schools, “They need a lot of catch-up. We’ve had 12-year-olds who had never learned how to cut paper with scissors. We had to start first-grade classes that were for mixed ages between eight and 12 years old.”

What help Horizons can give is limited by the organization’s resources. Their Beirut facility is too small to meet the needs of that area. Horizons would like to take over failed or bankrupt schools around the country and revitalize them, but financial resources are scarce.

These schools represent a chance for kids to build a new future – not only in their earthly lives, but in their eternal ones. “We really regard it as a discipleship program first and foremost,” Houssney says. “We teach not only all the school subjects, but we teach the Bible… that is really what makes this a spiritual, especially impactful endeavor.”

Want to help? Ask God how He wants to use you. Pray specifically for children in Lebanon to find Him as they look for purpose and fulfillment. Consider giving to help support Horizons and the schools the organization runs.

Learn more about Horizons International here.

Header photo courtesy of Unsplash.

Todd Nettleton with The Voice of the Martyrs USA says much of this persecution is happening in Africa. “You can trace the spread of radical Islam from North to South. We see more and more Africans raised up in that kind of Islamist militancy that wants to create a caliphate, have Islamic Sharia law, and be in control. We see more attacks against Christians, more churches burned, and more pastors killed.”

Nettleton says many people have become Christians from Muslim backgrounds in these countries. They are prime targets for persecution.

Religious nationalism

In other places, religious nationalism is causing persecution against Christians.

Nettleton gives an example from India. “The Prime Minister of the country happens to have come out of that ideology. They believe every Indian is a Hindu or should be a Hindu. If you’re not a Hindu, you should either convert or go find somewhere else to live.”

“Some of these Hindu nationalists will literally talk about the soil of India being Hindu soil.”

That’s why various states across India have passed so many anti-conversion laws. Nettleton says one group of Hindu nationalists broke into a church, beat up a pastor, and then called the police on the pastor they had attacked. He was arrested and taken to a police station. He was accused of trying to convert people away from Hinduism.

It’s a similar story in China, Nettleton says. “Xi Jinping has tried to unify the country under his rule and communist rule. They see Christians as a foreign religion, a source of foreign influence.”

How to pray

Ask God to strengthen Christians in these 18 countries. Pray the love of Jesus would change hearts.

Header photo courtesy of The Voice of the Martyrs USA on Facebook. 

Jack Sara, President of Bethlehem Bible College, says, “He was probably the first Christian to reach out to them with blankets with food parcels and tents. He just treated them as humans. He helped with bringing letters to their families, reaching out to their families in Gaza and elsewhere.”

Until his death, Brother Andrew was welcome in Gaza. He once presented a Bible to President Yasser Arafat. He once wrote, “There are no terrorists . . . As long as we see any person—Muslim, Communist, terrorist—as an enemy, then the love of God cannot flow through us to reach him.”

Work with Palestinians

1992 was also the year Sara first met Brother Andrew. “He was very much, I would say, involved in seeing that Bethlehem Bible College will continue to advance in its both training of students, but also outreach to the community around us.”

“When I wanted to go to seminary (I didn’t know this till after a while), Andrew was the guy who paid for my ticket to study in the Philippines for my Masters of Divinity.”

Brother Andrew angered many Christians in the U.S. through his gentleness. He mourned the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and called the killing of Osama Bin Laden a murder.

Sara says Brother Andrew practiced “Aggressive bridge-building. He was a supporter of reconciliation work with Palestinian Christians and Messianic Jews. He tried to help even those who would be looked at as fundamentalists or fanatics.”

Pray Christians around the world would learn from Brother Andrew’s gentleness and love.

The header photo shows Sara with Brother Andrew. (Photo courtesy of Bethlehem Bible College)

World Concern has launched a response. Peter Macharia says, “We are providing them with clean water for drinking and for use at home.” World Concern gets the water many miles from where people live, and stores it in tanks so people can use it.

Macharia explains how the food program works. “We give them food vouchers, where they go and get food from the local businesses, and we pay the local businesses. We are stocking their livestock by giving them goats, sheep, and small animals because those are the main economic mainstay for the local community.”

“We are doing these things to make sure that it is not just about meeting the needs now. We are also meeting the needs of the people for days to come.”

Macharia says droughts have become more and more frequent in Somalia. COVID-19 and frequent fighting in the country make the situation worse. “Three things – climate change, conflict, and COVID-19 – have had a very devastating impact on their ability to earn income or to produce their own food.”

World Concern works with local Christians to avoid extremist violence, often rampant in Somalia.

Pray the drought will end soon. You can support World Concern’s work in Somalia here.

Header photo courtesy of World Concern.