North Korea is considered the “worst country in the world to be a Christian,” according to the latest report on religious freedom by the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

People in the totalitarian country are classified according to their loyalty to the state and “believers are automatically considered a ‘hostile class’ and subjected to relentless persecution.

In its report, ACN refers to the defectors who were repatriated in October 2023 and said there is cause for concern for those “who had interacted with Christians while they were outside the country. They were all sent to political prisoner camps, known for the harsh treatment of inmates there.”

The report notes that while many served reduced sentences, “those who came into contact with Christianity” were interned “in political prisoner camps, which is in fact a life sentence without parole”.