Burkina Faso: Muslims enter church during prayers, murder 26 Christians

September 17, 2024

By Robert Spencer

Reprinted from Jihad Watch

“Make ready for them all that you can of force and of warhorses, so that by them you may strike terror in the enemy of Allah and your enemy…” (Qur’an 8:60)

“Burkina Faso: 26 civilians killed in terrorist attack in Kounla,” translated from “Burkina Faso : 26 civils tués dans une attaque terroriste à Kounla,” Africa News, September 4, 2024:

While the country was struggling to recover from the attack in Barsalogho, in the north, which had left more than 200 dead a week earlier, a new attack targeting civilians took place the following day in the commune of Sanaba.

The terrorists attacked a church during a prayer in the small village of Kounla. They surrounded the building, ordered the women and children to leave, then tied up the men.

The attackers then carried out summary executions, killing 26 people. They then set fire to homes and enclosures before fleeing with stolen livestock.

Survivors of the deadly attack sought refuge in Sanaba, further south.

Although the attack in Banwa province was exceptionally brutal, it was not the first to target the Christian community during a religious ceremony.

On 25 February, a similar attack in Essakana, in the north of the country, left fifteen dead and two injured during a Sunday mass.