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Burkina Faso: Gunmen Slaughter 15 Worshippers During Attack On Catholic Church

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – Suspected Islamic terrorists murdered 15 people in an attack on a Catholic church in Oudalan province, northern Burkina Faso on Sunday, Christian Today (CT) reports.

While Burkina Faso was once renowned for its religious cohesion, the west African country has fallen plague to Islamic jihadist terrorism amid ongoing political instability in recent years: Burkina Faso now ranks 20 on the US Open Doors World Watch List 2024 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted. There are an estimated 5.3 million Christians in Burkina Faso, amid a total population of nearly 24 million people.

The Feb. 25 massacre took place at a church in the Catholic Diocese of Dori in Essakane village, Oudalan province, when Islamic gunmen opened fire during the Sunday service.
Local diocesan leader Abbot Jean-Pierre Sawadogo said in a statement that 12 worshippers died at the scene and three others succumbed to their wounds later in hospital, CT reports.

“In this painful circumstance, we invite you to pray for the rest in God for those who have died in faith, for the healing of the wounded and … for the conversion of those who continue to sow death and desolation in our country,” Sawadogo said.

In a website statement about the situation facing Christians in Burkina Faso, the Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization reports: “Christians attempting to follow Jesus in Burkina Faso must try to do so without any sense of security or safety, even in places where Islamic militants were previously unable to reach…Burkina Faso used to be the epitome of religious cohesion, but Islamic militant influence has managed to erode much of the peaceful coexistence between Muslims and Christians.”