One dead after Muslims attack church in Uganda with machetes

 Suspected Islamic extremists stormed Katikara Anglican Church in Kakumiro District, western Uganda, hacking a church member to death and leaving several others injured on Tuesday.  

Kamumiro Police Chief confirmed the midnight incident saying, ‘‘People were attending overnight prayers when the attack happened. After the night prayers, they decided to sleep in the church. However, shortly after sleeping, people armed with pangas raided the church and started randomly hacking members of the congregation. One died on the spot, while others are nursing grave injuries. Others fled the church to save their lives.’’ 

Lias Mugume, who had been leading overnight prayers, died after he was hacked severally by the armed extremists. A witness said, “When we were done with the prayers, we slept on the pews to wait for the morning. The priest went to sleep in his house just next to the church. Suddenly, three men broke into the church and started slashing people with machetes. The first person they found near the door was Brother Mugume, who was leading us in the prayer session. He had dozed off near the door. They hacked him to death. Eight other people were also attacked, but the assailants left before we could get help.” 

Those injured were rushed to the hospital, where they are receiving treatment. The motive of the attack is yet to be established. Local church leaders say that tension between churches and the local Muslim community has been building over time, and this could be a terrorist attack. 

“The police cannot quickly ascertain the nature of the attack since the three assailants have not been arrested. But we know that there has been increasing friction between Christians here and the Muslims. Some of them claim that the churches are making a lot of noise as if we do not have Mosques here that have prayers five times a day. We are not saying they attacked our church, but if they were just thieves, they would have stolen something. The three stormed in, attacked worshipers, and left.” exclaimed the pastor of Katikara Church. 

The church district overseer condemned the Tuesday night attack saying, “It is an evil from the pits of hell to shed blood of innocent people inside a church.” 

He added, “We urge the security arms of the government, with the support of the community, to bring to book those culprits. We are also praying for the family of our member who lost his life, as we plan on a rededication of the church since we believe it was defiled by the murder that took place inside.”  

This terrorist attack comes six days after the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) Congo-based militia group raided a secondary school in the neighboring district of Kasese, killing 40 students and 5 community members. Six students were also abducted and taken away to Congo’s Virunga Forest, but according to reports, three of them have escaped their captors and returned to their homeland Uganda. 

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Eight killed by ADF on Sunday evening

 The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) terrorist group conducted a Sunday night attack in Kasindi, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), leaving eight dead, 12 injured and many others missing.  

Christians in Kasindi called an International Christian Concern (ICC) staffer asking for prayers around 10, p.m., as the terror group aligned with the Islamic State (IS) invaded the town. 

“Please know that the ADF has invaded the Western side of the town of Kasindi and Christians are being killed as we speak,” said a villager. “People have been alerted, and they are fleeing the area. The attackers are using hammers and machetes to avoid being heard if they use guns. We are asking for your prayers since this attack can turn out to be a mass massacre of believers if it is not stopped.” 

Security officers battled the rebels throughout the night in this border town between Uganda and the war-torn DRC.  

“The number of those killed stands at eight, and several others are in critical condition following last night’s attack,” a source confirmed from the mortuary. “There are missing people that we suspect have been abducted by the rebels. Hundreds have also fled and crossed into Uganda as other families return to look for their loved ones. Several houses were also burnt down. The security officers took a long time to repulse the ensuing terrorists and before they could arrive at the area, killings had already been done, and houses were on fire. 

“The situation is still fluid as the security agencies try to assess the extent of the attack. One of the deceased was a Kenyan driver who was shot dead while driving away just outside a hotel.” 

This attack comes five months after 15 Christians were killed and dozens injured when the rebel group detonated an improvised explosive device at a church in Kasindi while hundreds of believers gathered for a service.  

One church leader has expressed his concerns about the deteriorating security situation in Kasindi, a town known to host millions of Congolese displaced people.  

“We are pained that the only safe place where millions of victims flee to for shelter has become a target by the ADF rebels,” said the church leader. “Kasindi used to be a home for all the displaced Christians in Nord Kivu, and also others from as far as Ituri. The enemy is now coming for us. Where shall we run to? We are asking the government to protect us from these killers that have continued to target Christians for over three decades. And above all, we ask that you keep us in prayer as the Congolese believers bear this brunt of this fresh attack.”

In the past four weeks, the Kasindi area has lost 26 people in five deadly attacks all attributed to the Allied Democratic Forces. On May 11, three people were killed at the Semuliki crossing point, four kilometers from Kasindi town. On May 12, seven, people were injured when the ADF rebels launched a night assault in Katongo farming fields three kilometers from Kasindi. On May 14, a driver was killed and his truck was set on fire as he made his way to Kasindi near Kalindumbu. On June 8-9, ten civilians were killed in the village of Bukokoma, and 12 others were killed in Mutwanga, both neighboring Kasindi. 

The ADF was listed as one of the worst terrorist groups in ICC's comprehensive 2022 Persecutor of the Year annual report. The ADF was formed in 1995 in eastern DRC to overthrow the Ugandan government. After decades of violent extremism, the terror group affiliated itself with Islamic State in 2019. Years of local and international attempts to uproot the ADF have seen short-term success, but the group has repeatedly regenerated in the face of withering losses. 

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