Jihadists killed 26 people in a church, many of them Christians.
Local sources have told the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) of a new terrorist attack in Burkina Faso. The incident took place in the village of Sanaba, in the Diocese of Nouna, in the west of the country, on 25 August when a large group of insurgents surrounded the community, gathered the population and bound all men over the age of 12 who were Christians, followers of traditional religions or who they considered opponents of the Jihadist ideology. The terrorists then led the men to a nearby Protestant church and there slit the throats of 26 men, including Catholics.
The attack took place only one day after the massacre in the village of Barsalogho, in the Dioceses of Kaya where at least 150 people were killed, although the actual number may be as high as 250, according to local sources, with 150 seriously injured.
The same sources spoke of attacks on three parishes near the border with Mali, also in the Diocese of Nouna, over the past few days. “As a result, around 5,000 women and children have sought refuge in the city of Nouna. There is not a single man among them. The whereabouts of the male population is still uncertain, we don’t know if they escaped, if they are hiding, or if they were murdered,” says the source.
The Diocese of Nouna has seen other attacks over the past months, with a large number of Catholic, Protestant and animist places of worship being ransacked or burned. “In Zekuy, the local catechist realised an attack was taking place when he heard the sound of motorcycles and managed to escape into the woods with the Blessed Sacrament and the rest of the population. However, the Church was vandalised, and images were destroyed. They also tried to desecrate the tabernacle, and painted inscriptions on the wall that had a fresco of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” says the source.
It is believed that since May 2024, around 100 Christians have been murdered in the Zekuy-Doumbala pastoral region, whereas others have been kidnapped, with no news of their whereabouts.
The wave of violence in Burkina Faso is part of an alarming trend that has plunged the country into an increasingly deeper crisis since 2015. ACN calls on all benefactors and friends of the foundation to pray for the victims of violence in Burkina Faso and for a return to peace and security.
By Sina Hartet & Maria Lozano.
