The regime of North Korea released an internal statement in 2026 claiming to have "almost eliminated" the underground churches and secret prayer groups in the country. After decades of systematic eradication campaigns, the State says that "organized clandestine services have practically disappeared." Mission Network News (MNN) reported that this statement, far from being cause for relief, is a sign of deepening repression: any Christian who remains in the country operates under the immediate risk of execution or of being sent, together with their entire family, to one of the regime's labor camps.
It is estimated that between 50,000 and 70,000 Christians are held in North Korea's infamous labor camps, according to data from Open Doors. When someone is discovered with a Bible, it is not only the one carrying it who is imprisoned; their parents and children are taken as well. The mere possession of any Christian material can result in public execution. In the 2026 World Watch List of persecution, North Korea holds first place, a position it has kept for more than two consecutive decades on Open Doors' World Watch List.
Despite the regime's statement, organizations such as Voice of the Martyrs and Open Doors continue to receive discreet signs that an underground Church survives, scattered in tiny cells. Christian radio broadcasts from South Korea and other neighboring countries reach anonymous listeners. Dozens of North Koreans who fled to China and later turned to the gospel try to return to bring the message to their people, risking their own lives to cross the border.
Pray for the tens of thousands of Christians in the labor camps of North Korea, many of whom will never have their names recorded, but who are known by name by God. Intercede that the Christian radio broadcasts would reach heart after heart in the most closed country in the world. Ask the Lord that the regime of Kim Jong-un would come to an end without bloodshed, and that a free Korea would produce one of the greatest revivals in the history of Asia. Pray also for the converted defectors who risk everything to carry the gospel back to their people.
