Violence in DRC: Over 40 Dead in Recent Attack
(Photo: Open Doors)
A tragic assault in the Democratic Republic of Congo has claimed the lives of at least 40 individuals, including Christians. Open Doors, an organization focused on the persecution of Christians, referred to this incident as a “killing spree.”
The attack, which targeted a Catholic church during a prayer vigil, resulted in the deaths of 21 individuals at around 1am on Sunday morning in Komanda, Ituri province, located in eastern DRC. This horrendous act has been linked to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a group affiliated with the Islamic State.
Beyond the church, other fatalities occurred in nearby homes and businesses that were set ablaze. This event follows a February massacre where 70 individuals were brutally murdered, many beheaded, in a Protestant church.
Illia Djadi, Open Doors’ expert on sub-Saharan Africa, notes that the attacks are “very strategic,” targeting “defenceless rural farming communities” devoid of security presence. “Most of the time they’re using machetes, beheading people, in the dead of night not to attract attention,” Djadi stated. “They are massacring village after village, community after community.”
The Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) reported that among the victims were children attending a summer camp. Father Marcelo Oliveira, a Comboni missionary from North Kivu, shared that the children were part of the Eucharistic Crusade movement. He described the attack, stating, “The attack occurred at around 1am in the morning. The rebels entered the church and murdered a large number of children, both inside the church building and in the compound.”
Djadi highlighted the vulnerability of communities due to the focus of the international community on a peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda. This situation leaves the ADF with the liberty to commit attacks without restraint. “There’s no attention on the activity of ADF and the ongoing massacres,” Djadi said, emphasizing the unchecked nature of these violent acts.
The ADF’s actions seem to be part of an effort to establish an Islamic caliphate in parts of DRC, reminiscent of the system imposed by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Djadi calls for stronger action from both the DRC government and the international community to halt these attacks. “We need to see a clear willingness and responsibility from the government to protect their citizens. And the international community also needs to wake up to what’s happening,” he urged.
Open Doors partners have mobilized to provide aid, medicine, and trauma counseling to the survivors of the attack in Komanda. Djadi pointed out the dire consequences of inaction, noting, “Around six million people have been killed over 30 years in eastern DRC, and eight million internally displaced. We must use all the means used to defeat IS in Syria and Iraq to defeat them again in Eastern DRC.”
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
