Persecution of Christians at 'all-time high', 7,100 killed in 2015 for their faith

The number of persecuted Christians around the world has doubled in the last year, according to recent data from Christian advocate group Open Doors.

The watchdog group that fights for the rights and protection for persecuted Christians released its latest figures, revealing that 7,100 Christ-believers were killed because of their faith in 2015.

This number is up by more than 100 percent from previous year statistics, during which the number of Christians killed because of their faith was around 3,000.

The group continues to provide help through its worldwide network in order to "equip" and "encourage" persecuted Christians who are under the threat of killings, beheadings, rape, lost jobs and houses, and rejection their communities.

Open Doors USA defines persecution as "any hostility experienced as a result of one's identification with Christ."

Asides from releasing the numbers of killed martyrs in Christ in 2015, the group also published their annual top 10 countries where Christian persecution is most prevalent.

North Korea topped the list, which also included Muslim nations Iraq (No. 2), Afghanistan (No. 4), Syria (No. 5), Pakistan (No. 6), and Iran (No. 9).

According to David Curry, CEO of Open Doors USA, Islamic extremists are becoming more common in Muslim countries, and these 'failed states' are not able to protect their citizens' religious liberty.

Talking to the National Press Club last week, Curry said that the great difficulty Christians are facing across the globe only means there is a 'total lack of religious freedom.'

"We believe in religious freedom for all and that does not happen in countries that we do business with every day," Curry said.