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Europe is currently grappling with a sharp increase in anti-Christian violence, with 2024 marking a particularly troubling year. Germany has emerged as the hardest-hit nation in this surge, recording the highest number of arson attacks on churches across the continent. Data from the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe) reveal that a total of 2,211 anti-Christian incidents occurred throughout Europe in 2024. These offenses included 274 personal attacks involving physical violence or threats, highlighting a disturbing rise in hostility directed at Christian communities.
Although there was a slight apparent decrease from the 2,444 offenses documented in 2023, analysts warn that this dip may be misleading due to incomplete data collection last year. The severity of attacks remains alarming, with some incidents resulting in fatalities. One tragic case involved the death of a 76-year-old monk in a Spanish monastery in November 2024. Similarly, in Istanbul during January 2024, a worshipper was killed in an ISIS-related attack during Sunday Mass, underlining the global dimension and extremist links to some of these violent acts.
France has also seen significant violence, including the near-total destruction of a historic church in Saint-Omer by arson and a disturbing episode in Dijon where tear gas was sprayed during a Seventh-Day Adventist service, injuring nine attendees. A noteworthy trend in France involves Islamist-related incidents, such as the arrest of a suspect connected to an ISIS-inspired attack on Notre Dame de Paris, and the desecration of a cemetery in southern France where more than 50 graves and the associated church were vandalized with slogans like “Submit to Islam.”
Germany not only reported the most arson attacks, tallying 33 incidents in 2024, but also recorded a 22% rise in overall anti-Christian crimes compared to the previous year, totaling 337 offenses. The Protestant Press Service conducted a survey that highlighted a rise in break-ins, thefts, and willful destruction targeting Christian sites, with 228 crimes reported nationwide throughout 2024. Alongside Germany and France, the United Kingdom and Spain are among the countries most affected by these rising attacks.
The human cost of this violent wave is starkly illustrated by the brutal murder of Ashur Sarnaya, an Iraqi Christian refugee who had escaped ISIS persecution but was killed in Lyon in September. The growing intolerance and hostility reflected in these incidents paint a worrying picture of the social climate affecting Christian communities across Europe. Analysts emphasize that these attacks are not isolated events but part of a broader trend of rising intolerance that disrupts social cohesion and threatens the safety of religious minorities.
Experts urge governments and civil society to respond urgently to curb this violence and to protect vulnerable communities. The complex nature of these attacks, involving extremist groups and local tensions, demands coordinated efforts to address both immediate security concerns and the underlying social issues fueling discrimination and hatred. Without proactive measures, this surge in anti-Christian violence risks deepening divides and escalating conflict within European societies.
