An alarming increase in violence against Christians in Europe has been documented by two separate reports recently published by the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
The data showed a 44 percent increase in attacks against Christians last year compared to 2021.
In particular, a dramatic rise in arson attacks against Christian institutions was recorded with such incidents up 75 percent year-over-year. A total of 231 attacks were reported in Germany alone.
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Maximilian Krah, a member of the Federal Executive Board of the right-wing opposition party Alternative for Germany (AfD) and one of the AfD candidates in the 2024 European election campaign expressed his concern over the findings of the reports.
“The reports of an increase in attacks against Christians in Europe are alarming in themselves. However, the low press coverage also reflects a worrying ignorance on the part of the political and media mainstream.
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“All the rhetoric of tolerance is worthless if it does not also apply to Christians. So why the deafening silence?” Krah asked.
“Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that all too often anti-Christian attacks come from left-wing ideologues or those claiming to be seeking protection,” he added, expressing his party’s commitment to raising awareness of the issue.
Earlier this year, two Syrian brothers arrested in Germany on suspicion of plotting a radical Islamist terror attack had discussed plans to blow up a fully occupied Swedish church, while several church-goers were killed in a mass shooting at a church in Hamburg back in March.
In January, an illegal Moroccan migrant stormed a church in Algeciras, Spain, armed with a machete, stabbing a priest in the neck. He then went to another church where he attacked a sacristan, hunting his victim down as he attempted to flee and delivering a fatal wound in the town square.
