Police in Brandenburg took a 15-year-old from Zossen into custody on Christmas Day. Security services believe he was planning an attack on a church in Berlin over the Christmas period. The young man was released from police custody due to a lack of evidence.
The desecration of the parish of St Raphael Kalinowski in Mrągowo took place on the night of 25-26 December. An unknown perpetrator entered the church premises and destroyed the statue of Mary in the church chapel. The situation was recorded by the parish camera.
On the night of 24 December, in the small church of San Rocco in Malpaga di Orzinuovi, near Brescia, the floor and chairs were covered in cigarette butts and urine. Nothing was stolen.
On Christmas Eve, 24 December, the church of Sant'Antonio Abate was the target of an act of vandalism. Unknown persons set off fireworks on the side of the sacred building, causing considerable damage. The explosion tore off part of the frame, and debris was found scattered on the ground.
On December 22 thieves broke into the tabernacle of the church of Miglierina in Viareggio using a drill and a crowbar and stole the consecrated hosts, leaving the pyxes inside. Several liturgical objects and some personal belongings were also stolen. The parish priest does not exclude a Satanic motive.
St Peter's Church in Waltrop has been plagued by vandalism: There have been repeated cases of damage, people urinating in the church, leaving faeces or breaking beer bottles. Not only are the church doors currently closed outside of service times, but the nativity scene has also been moved.
On 20 December, it was reported that all the figures - Mary, Joseph, animals and the Infant Jesus - were missing from the nativity scene next to the church in Tunbridge, Wales.
In the Sanctuary of St John Paul II in Krosno, the Passion Cross and the figure of Jesus Christ hanging from it were desecrated on 19 December. The vandalism was particularly brutal, and the figure was broken into many fragments.
Between 9 and 19 December, a series of acts of vandalism took place at the Central Cemetery in Szczecin. The perpetrators damaged tombstones, demolished graves, spilled wax from lighted candles and smashed them against tombstones. Two 14-year-olds were arrested for desecration.
The town hall of Migny filed a complaint after several swastika inscriptions were found on a monument in the local cemetery on 19 December. The police are now investigating this act of vandalism.
The figures of Mary and Joseph have been beheaded in a vandalism attack on the nativity scene in front of the Metz train station, the city authorities announced on 17 December. According to the town hall, an investigation is underway to find the perpetrators. A complaint has been lodged.
In Seville town of El Viso del Alcor, the desecration of four coffins in the municipal cemetery on December 17 is being investigated. Authorities and specialists do not rule out ritual motivations. In Spain, an increase in attacks on Christian cemeteries is reported for 2024.
Between 14 and 15 December, unknown persons set fire to the church behind the large chapel on Büscherweg, Kierspe, damaging the back wall of the church.
St Peter's Church in Withington was vandalised on 16 December, with the door and interior sprayed with paint. Police officers described the damage as 'shocking and irreparable'.
As reported on 15 December, a pile of rubbish and bulky waste caught fire at the back of a building housing the Bremen police and the local Free Church welfare office. Left-wing extremists claimed responsibility and expressed hostility towards the Pentecostal Church.
The mayor of Manduria, Gregorio Pecoraro, has approved an ordinance banning walking funeral processions. A local councillor is challenging the ban, saying it restricts religious freedom.
The statues of Mary and the ox disappeared from the nativity scene in front of the church of San Michele Arcangelo and Santa Lucia in Cesa, a hamlet in the municipality of Marciano della Chiana, on December 14.
The church of Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption in Guercheville (Seine-et-Marne) was the target of vandalism on the night of 13 December. Parishioners in the village raised the alarm after discovering the symbol 666 with an "S" on the front door.
Protestant pastor Ralf Sedlak has been the target of several threats and attacks following a sermon criticising the Hamas attack on Israel in October. The police are now being called in to protect him and his family, as well as to provide security for church services as all members of the congregation face hostility.
Between December 6-9, unknown perpetrators defaced the facade of a facade of the Catholic community center St. Christophorus with graffiti. The white graffiti defaced both the north and west sides of the church building.
Seven youths were reported in Santa Coloma for trying to steal the figure of the Virgin Mary from the municipal nativity scene at 4am on 8 December, causing damage. They fled after being surprised by the Town Hall guard and the night watchmen, but were identified a short time later in Sant Carles street.
An 11-year-old and a 16-year-old caused a riot in a church in Bisingen in the Zollernalb district on 7 December, causing property damage of around 3,000 euros. They damaged a vase, antique candlesticks, plants and plant pots, and scattered books on the floor. Sheet music was scattered on the floor, the Advent wreath was knocked over and everything was lying around. The damage is estimated at 3000€, said a police spokesman.
On the night of 7 January, unknown persons vandalised the walls of the Catholic church of La Mégère and a public statue of the Virgin Mary. The vandals sprayed several offensive inscriptions on both sites. The police are now investigating.
As reported on December 3, the Saint-Éloi church in Bordeaux suffered significant damage after a burglary and vandalism estimated at 10,000 euros, with a safe broken and stained glass windows behind the high altar damaged. In June, the church was tagged during a feminist march in the Gironde.
The Sunday mass in the church of Sant'Andrea on 1 December ended in hospital for a priest in the northern Italian community of Zignago - there was acid in the chalice instead of wine. The mass was interrupted and the congregation called the emergency services.
As reported on 28 November, unknown persons threw the Easter candle against the wall of St Mary's Church in Waltrop, damaged altar objects, tore a prayer book and threw other objects around the church.
On 26 November, a 28-year-old Moroccan man damaged the door and part of the furniture of a room in an establishment in Formia that had helped him at the request of the Immaculate Heart of Mary - Don Bosco Church, and threatened to set fire to the church.
On the morning of 25 November, Father Maykel found the church of Valdencín in Santa Teresa vandalised. The sacristy was badly damaged, €80 of the collection and a silver monstrance were missing and, most devastatingly for the community, the consecrated hosts had been desecrated.
The Saint-Denys basilica has been the target of several acts of vandalism since September. In the latest incident, two youths entered the Argenteuil basilica through a back door shouting "Allah Akbar". Police presence around the building has been increased. In September, the presbytery was damaged by vulgar graffiti. Two months later, a Latin cross at the entrance to the same building was damaged and partially stolen.
Two teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of causing more than £15,000 of damage to the Grade II listed St Margaret's Church in Bowers Gifford on 24 November. It was the second time in a month that the church had been vandalised.
In the night of November 24, a grave cross at the Cross Church in Sehnde was desecrated and the lighting of the church was demolished
On the night of 23 November, a massive act of vandalism took place in Krosno Odrzańskie (Lubuskie Province). A total of 46 gravestones were damaged or broken and some graves were opened.
During Mass on 23 November in the parish of Saints Marco and Bernardino, Esenta, some boys entered the church shouting repeated blasphemies and insults in the presence of the faithful, and then quickly ran away. For several weeks, vandalism has been reported in the cemetery in the area, where citizens have found various damages to ornaments and decorations in the masonry along the paths.
Excrement on the floor, overturned flower vases and dirty tablecloths. This is what members of the Saint-Idunet parish in Châteaulin (Brittany) discovered when they entered their church on 20 November. A Easter candle had also been stolen.
On the weekend of 18-19 November, the Church of St Mary (Marienkirche Blechhammer) in Bodenwöhr was robbed and vandalised by unknown persons. The rosaries on display were stolen or thrown into the holy water basin and the altar candles were thrown to the ground. Various other items were scattered around the church. The police are investigating.
Unknown persons threw several burning strips of paper into the basement of the Walldorf church.
On 13th November the French Communications Authority (Arcom) fined a television channel €100,000 for presenting abortion as the "first cause of death" during a Catholic programme.
A statue of Mary outside the local cemetery in Pievesestina, Cesena, has been smashed to pieces.
Unknown people entered the church of Santa Maria al Soccorso during Sunday mass and sprayed a pungent substance with pepper spray. The parish priest had to interrupt the service and finish celebrating mass outside. The perpetrators have fled.
A Catholic priest in Poland succumbed to serious injuries in the hospital on November 9 - six days after the physical attack in his parish of St. Albert by the 27-year-old man from Szczytno. The male suspect in this case is in custody, charged with attempted murder. The clergyman was attacked for the purpose of a robbery.
The church of Saint-Léger has been closed since unknown persons emptied a fire extinguisher inside the building, causing serious damage to the furniture. Following this act, which took place on 9 November, the local mayor immediately expressed his desire to have the church cleaned as soon as possible so that the parishioners could celebrate Christmas in this sacred building.
On November 8, a Tablecloth in the evangelical Church "Am Glockenhof" was set on fire in the afternoon. The fire burned the tablecloth and the diary on it. The damage caused is approximately 80 euros.
On 8 November, an unknown perpetrator has set several small fires in a church in Küssaberg (Waldshut district). Witnesses discovered the flames and alerted the emergency services.
The churches of Truyes and Lignières-de-Touraine were desecrated and consecrated hosts were stolen. Four other churches in the diocese of Tours suffered identical events in the same week.
On the night of November 7, vandals broke a statue of Christ on the missionary cross in front of the church in Tarnow-Klikowa, into small pieces. Also, the statue's head was stolen. The parish priest and the faithful are convinced that it was a deliberate act of desecration.
A nun was brutally attacked near Largo di Torre Argentina in Rome on 4 November. The nun was violently punched and slapped in the face after trying to push away the attacker, who had approached the tabernacle in a suspicious manner.
Unknown persons have set fire to and damaged objects and prayer cards in a church in Kaufbeuren.
On 3 November, an unknown person set fire to objects inside the Twelve Apostles Church in Mannheim, spreading to the carpet and a wooden table. The fire was extinguished before it spread further into the church building.
On the night of October 31, a fire damaged the entrance door of the Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Quartu.
A person driving a car rammed into the gate leading to St Patrick's Catholic Church in Ahane, causing extensive damage to the gate.