Eighteen people, including a Christian nurse, were murdered by militant gunmen in Lamdamol village, Burkina Faso, in an attack that began late on the night of 1 February.
The unidentified heavily armed militants arrived in the village, in northern Seno province bordering the Sahel, on motorbikes and selectively picked out civilians before killing them.
Amongst the dead was Christian Robert Milogo, a senior nurse who had travelled to help those suffering in the terror afflicted zone, despite the known risks from Islamist militant activity. Many people have already fled to safer towns and villages in the Central North.
A local church leader reported that the victims were selectively killed by the militants. “This is not the first attack where civilians were killed for a reason or another including their [Christian] faith,” he told Barnabas.
The attack came a week after a jihadi ultimatum was sent out demanding the community leave the region, bringing widespread panic to the village and surrounding area.
A week earlier jihadists murdered “in the name of Allah” at least ten Christians in an attack on Silgadji, in neighbouring Bourzanga province.