A number of hate crimes and attacks against Christians and Christian target in Europe in the last two months have been highlighted by the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians.

The worst was a bomb attack last month on the Basílica del Pilar in Zaragoza, Spain.

The bomb exploded close to the organ and sitting benches. The church and the market square in front of the basilica had to be cleared subsequently by the police.  

This bombing was the first attack on the basilica of Zaragoza since the Spanish Civil War.  

Also last month, a statue of Mary was destroyed in the French city of Bordeaux in Southern France. The statue had been attached to a corner of an apartment building at Rue Neuve.  

In addition, an old Christian cemetery in the town of Villecien in Burgundy was vandalised at the end of September.

Sixty-one graves were vandalised and inscriptions and religious statues were destroyed, removed or disclocated.