‘Extreme levels of persecution’ for millions of Christians

NORTH KOREA is the country where Christians face the most severe persecution and discrimination, according to an annual report.

Open Doors, a global network that supports persecuted Christians across the world, has released its World Watch List 2023 report, which shows the 50 countries in which Christians are most oppressed. It has found that more than 312 million Christians face very high or extreme levels of persecution.

Other countries in the top 50 include

Afghanistan, China and Nicaragua.

In North Korea, which tops the list, a new anti-reactionary thought law criminalises any published material of foreign origin, which includes the Bible.

Timothy Cho, a North Korean escapee who is now the Open Doors spokesperson for the region, told Christian news website Premier: ‘This new law brings a new wave of persecution.’

When asked how Christians are still able to share their faith, he said: ‘Just imagine a country that doesn’t have mobile phones or internet but you have human community. That’s how the story can pass on one by one… We need hope, without hope, humanity couldn’t come all the way until this moment. And that hope we find in faith, which I did in prison.’

He added: ‘Christians talk about it, and they pray… They know they can be killed, but they know their faith will not be destroyed.’

Premier League footballer passes on his skills

FORMER Premier League footballer Julio Arca has begun providing weekly football and fitness sessions for residents of The Salvation Army’s Swan Lodge, a centre for people experiencing homelessness.

During his career Arca played for Sunderland and Middlesbrough, and was part of the Argentinian squad that won the Fifa Under-20 World Cup in 2001.

Swan Lodge’s support worker Andy Smith, who runs football sessions for the residents, said: ‘We are all so excited to have an icon like Julio coming to train us. A lot of our residents are huge footy fans.

‘Julio will not only be helping our clients hone their football skills, but will be providing general fitness training for those who want to improve their health.

‘We’ve been running football sessions for our residents for years now and have seen what a difference it makes to them, not only with boosting physical fitness, but helping to build teamwork skills, resilience and improving mental health.’