Weekly Bulletin on the Persecution
of Christians Worldwide
9 June 2026
Through her ongoing commitment to prayer and solidarity with all brothers and sisters who suffer for the love of Christ, the Universal Christian Church of the New Jerusalem publishes a weekly overview of the persecution of Jesus’ disciples, who are targeted across the globe for their faithfulness to the Gospel.
Nigeria
On the evening of 31 May, a group of suspected Fulani militants raided Gwomjang village, a predominantly Christian community in Kadunu Ward, Mangu Local Government Area, near the town of Gindiri, Plateau State. The attack occurred shortly after religious services had ended, with many worshippers returning from evening prayers and a women’s prayer meeting. Eight Christians were killed and at least fifteen others were wounded.
On 2 June, at least five Christians were killed by a group of around twelve-armed Fulani militants in the Apa and Ukum counties of neighbouring Benue State. A woman was also injured.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
On 30 May, in the Beni region of North Kivu, militants from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) – a jihadist group affiliated with the Islamic State – killed at least seven Christians. Amidst this surge of violence, Father Gédéon Kasereka Bahati, a Catholic priest from St. Joseph’s Parish in Bobandana in the Diocese of Goma, was abducted. He was seized after officiating a wedding in Kanyabayonga, alongside his driver and the newlyweds, who were also taken hostage.
On the night of 2 June, the same ADF militants attacked the village of Mbau, located approximately nineteen kilometres from Beni, killing at least twenty-four Christians, including a local pastor and his wife. In less than a week, jihadist attacks in the Beni area claimed the lives of more than forty believers, while numerous civilians remain captive with their fate still unknown.
Somalia
On 28 May, Sofia Ahmed, a 22-year-old Christian woman, was attacked and beaten by her Muslim relatives in the Lower Juba region because of her Christian faith. She sustained a broken nose and significant blood loss as a result of the beating.
China
On 3 June, seven government officials confronted preacher Chang Hao in Zhenxiong County (Yunnan Province) and served him with an order to cease all online religious activities under the threat of legal penalties. The following day, on 4 June, authorities restricted his WeChat account, his primary tool for communication and pastoral outreach.
Also on 4 June 2026, the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, the authorities in Chengdu, the capital of China’s southwestern Sichuan province, launched a new, coordinated operation against the Early Rain Covenant Church. At least five ministers and church members were summoned and interrogated by State Security agents, who also carried out searches of their homes. The community has been the target of systematic persecution since 2018, when its founder, Pastor Wang Yi, was sentenced to nine years in prison on charges of “inciting subversion of state power”.
India
On 27 May, Hindu nationalist groups stormed a private hotel in the city of Ratlam (Madhya Pradesh State) where a two-day Christian spiritual convention was taking place. The event was disrupted amid allegations of forced conversions. Under pressure from the large crowd of protesters, police detained fifteen members of the organizing committee – who were later released – under the pretext of lacking proper administrative permits.
Vietnam
Between late May and early June, in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai, two Montagnard Christians, Pastor Siu Yúi and church member Siu Dok, were arrested on charges of “undermining national unity” for allegedly spreading religious teachings among ethnic minorities. These arrests are part of the communist regime’s long-running campaign against Montagnard Christians who refuse to join state-controlled churches.
Russia
On 28 May, the name of seventy-four-year-old Pastor Yuri Sipko was officially added to the register of “terrorists and extremists” maintained by Rosfinmonitoring, Russia’s Federal Financial Monitoring Service. This designation imposes severe financial restrictions and effectively criminalizes his ministry and his testimony of faith.
As we enter the week leading up to the Solemn Feast of 13 June, the despicable acts of persecution described above take on a particularly profound significance.
While the faithful in the Land of Love prepare to welcome the Incarnate Word, who has once again descended among us, the Prologue of John resounds with renewed relevance:
“He came to his own domain and his own people did not accept him” (Jn 1:11).
The persecuted Christians of today are the living embodiment of this great Mystery of Love. Just as the divine Child found no place and was rejected by his own people, so too are his disciples rejected, beaten, imprisoned, and killed for the Name they bear. Yet the promise is fulfilled in them: “But to all who did accept him he gave power to become children of God” (Jn 1:12). Through their witness, “the true light that enlightens everyone” shines forth (Jn 1:9).
The Universal Christian Church of New Jerusalem commends all persecuted believers to Baby Jesus, so that the Lord, who humbled Himself for the sake of humanity, may grant His peace to the little ones and the oppressed, wiping away the tears of the afflicted and hastening the day of His justice.
“They were born not out of human stock or urge of the flesh or will of man
but of God himself.
The Word was made flesh, he lived among us”
(Gv 1,13-14)
