41 countries ban religion-related groups; Jehovah’s Witnesses, Baha’is among the most commonly targeted
Around a fifth (21%) of the 198 countries evaluated banned at least one religion-related group in 2019, our analysis found.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Around a fifth (21%) of the 198 countries evaluated banned at least one religion-related group in 2019, our analysis found.
79 countries and territories out of the 198 studied around the world (40%) had laws or policies in 2019 banning blasphemy.
Asked in spring 2019 which country or group poses the greatest threat to their country in the future, just 6% of Americans named Iran.
Globally, Muslims live in the biggest households, followed by Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, Jews and the religiously unaffiliated.
The global Muslim population is more concentrated in Islam’s main population centers than the global Christian population is for Christianity.
Muslim societies have gained a reputation in recent decades for failing to adequately educate women. But a new analysis of Pew Research Center data on educational attainment and religion suggests that economics, not religion, is the key factor limiting the education of Muslim women.
Read five facts about religion in Saudi Arabia — a country that is the birthplace of Islam and, as such, holds special importance for Muslims worldwide.
The public unrest that swept across Iran starting in late December began as a protest against poor economic conditions, but it quickly turned into a call for an end to the country’s theocratic regime.
While many, especially in the U.S., may associate Islam with the Middle East or North Africa, nearly two-thirds of the world’s 1.6 billion Muslims live in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Obama administration’s goal of receiving 110,000 refugees in fiscal 2017 is significantly higher than last year’s target of 85,000.
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