For the fourth consecutive year, North Korea was named the country where Christians face the most extreme persecution, according to Open Doors’ World Watch List 2026, but Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's dictatorship just over a year ago has propelled the Mideast nation up the list.

Unveiled on Jan. 14, Open Doors' World Watch List saw a dramatic 12-spot climb of Syria from 18 in 2025 to the sixth most dangerous place in the world for Christians in 2026.

Rev. Gary Stagg, the executive director of Open Doors Canada, told The Catholic Register how the power vacuum left by the collapse of al-Assad’s dictatorship in December 2024 has emboldened various anti-Christian extremist groups.

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“They are really trying to intimidate the 300,000 remaining Christians into forced conversions,” said Stagg. “They have trucks with loudspeakers on the back basically going around telling people that they have to convert.”

Followers of Christ who refuse to renounce their faith are forced to pay the Islamic “jizya” tax of protection.

Christians have also seen their churches vandalized, graves defiled and schools closed. However, the chief reason behind the higher list placement was a terrorist attack on St. Elias Church in Damascus on June 22 that killed at least 22 Christians (some sources list the death toll at 30). A lone attacker opened fire and detonated an explosive device within the Greek Orthodox house of worship during a service.

Open Doors International’s list indicated that 27 Syrian Christians were killed because of their faith in 2025, an unsettling rise from zero in 2024.

Stagg said people have inquired why Nigeria, ranked No. 7 for the third year in a row, is not at the top of the list. After all, Open Doors itself is among many entities that officially recognizes this West African country as the world-leading Christian murder nation: 3,500 of the 5,000 Christian killings recorded by Open Doors worldwide — 70 per cent — were committed in Nigeria.  

Chillingly, this figure potentially represents a significant undercount. According to the Nigerian-based International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), 7,000 Christians were killed in Nigeria during the first 220 days of 2025, an average of 32 fatalities a day.

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One reason why Nigeria is listed seventh is that the persecution of private, family, community, national and church life is not as severe as in other nations. Also, 100-110 million Christians are living in Nigeria as of late 2025, which dwarfs the hundreds of thousands in Syria, North Korea and other afflicted countries.

Iran, bumped down from nine to No. 10, is another country to watch considering the ongoing mass protests sweeping the country against the Islamic Republic. The sheer number of protesters, the footholds they have gained in major Iranian cities and their resilience amid electricity shutdowns and violent regime retaliation have signalled to the world that perhaps this moment represents the best opportunity to overthrow the despotic reign of the Ayatollahs.

As of the Register’s press deadline, the world still awaits to see if the U.S. will provide a key assist to help the protesters achieve victory, something President Donald Trump would do if protesters were being killed by the Islamic regime. As of Jan. 13, media reports said about 650 protesters had died.  

Noting how Iran is already home to one of the fastest-growing Christian populations in the world in recent years, Stagg said the current government's collapse would accelerate the growth.

“People are asking questions,” said Stagg. “The more freedom people get, the more we'll see people actually turn to Christianity because they have questions. They want to know more about it, but oftentimes that's being stifled.”

As for North Korea, essentially, it is impossible to gather for public prayer or worship anywhere in this single-party communist state, and attempting secret household adoration carries great risk. The outlawing of God has been exacerbated in the past five years with Kim Jong Un’s regime instituting an “anti-reactionary thought law.” This dictatorial decree criminalized Christian belief and Bible ownership.

On Jan. 18, starting at 7 p.m. EST, Open Doors Canada will host a World Watch List event that will feature firsthand stories of courage amid persecution and guidance on how to pray for the 380 million Christians at risk of oppression around the globe.

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Though prayer is dismissed by some as “trite,” Stagg said our persecuted brothers and sisters do not feel that way.

“If you ask one of them, ‘what can we do for you,’ the number one thing that comes back is always, first of all, to pray,” said Stagg. "Pray for us and don't forget about us.”