Algeria is preparing to welcome Pope Léon XIV in April, a visit the government hopes will highlight the country’s historic ties to Christianity and its claim to the legacy of Saint Augustine. But the visit will take place at a context marked by church closures and mounting crackdown on Christian communities.
Official media have intensified messaging portraying Algeria as a cradle of early Christianity. Yet Christian leaders say nearly all churches remain closed by administrative order, pushing worship into private homes.
Only four of 47 churches open in 2017 are still authorized to operate, with congregants meeting quietly to avoid accusations of holding illegal assemblies, according to Christian rights watchdogs.
In 2022, the UN human rights chief warned of discrimination against non‑Muslim minorities and the closure of their places of worship. Open Doors, an NGO monitoring Christian persecution, ranks Algeria among the world’s most repressive states for Christians, citing widespread church shutdowns and more than 50 prosecutions of Christians in recent years. The US has kept Algeria on its Special Watch List for religious freedom violations since 2021.
Repression is often most acute in the restive Kabylie region, home to a growing Protestant community. Kabylie’s Christians face daily harassment, arrests and intimidation, with dozens facing legal action for unauthorized worship. Even carrying a Bible or bearing a Christian name has reportedly been treated as proselytism.
A Christian coalition from Kabylie appealed to the US government in 2025, warning of the “near‑complete elimination of Protestant worship spaces” in the region. The coalition denounced Algeria’s use of Article 87, originally anti‑terrorism legislation, which they say is now applied to criminalize peaceful worship and restrict conversions.
Nationwide, the closures trace back to an inspection campaign launched in 2017, during which a joint commission of religious affairs officials and security services evaluated nearly all active churches. Many received warnings before being sealed. Videos circulating online showed police removing worshippers from churches in Oran and Béjaïa, prompting local protests.
Pastor Youssef Ourahmane, vice‑president of the Protestant Church of Algeria, was sentenced in 2024 to one year in prison, including six months suspended. International Christian advocacy groups say at least 18 Algerian Christians currently face prison sentences for their faith.
A 2012 law subjects religious associations to approval by a national commission that includes no representatives of minority faiths. Human Rights Watch has described the system as enabling arbitrary suppression of religious life.
Even the Catholic Church- usually cautious and largely foreign‑staffed – has faced restrictionms. In 2022, authorities shut down Caritas Algérie, the Church’s long‑standing humanitarian arm, citing registration concerns.
