Jeremy Barker, Director of RFI’s Middle East Action Team, joined the Drew Mariani Show earlier this week to discuss the ongoing persecution of Christians around the world in light of the release of Open Door’s 2022 World Watch List report.

Barker addresses some of the background and content of the Open Doors report and speaks to a range of dire conditions in which Christians are living in China, Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere.

For example, Barker points to China:

The Chinese Communist Party uses a very sophisticated technology system and massive amounts of surveillance to control anything they view as an ideological threat to the Communist Party. … They edit the Bible to remove passages that may be contradictory to the official party ideology and [interfere] with the right of religious institutions, including Catholic and Protestant churches, in selecting their own leadership.

Barker continues by turning his focus to Iraq and Afghanistan:

In a place like Iraq, the emergence of ISIS led to both the killing of Christians and massive displacement followed by a refugee crisis with thousands of people unable to return to their homes. …Something that does not always come through [in reporting] is the way that religious persecution is a major driver of this displacement… The country that has moved to the top of the [Open Doors] list for the first time is Afghanistan, where we are now seeing [another example] of massive displacement [of Christians]. And for those who have stayed, the conditions are very worrying.

Listen to the full interview (beginning at the 07:30 mark) on the Drew Mariani Show.