Islamist Militants Kill 70 Christians, Leave Headless Corpses in Congo Church

By Hauwa Adamu sani On Feb 22, 2025

Democratic Republic of Congo, Bukavu , November 2011 Kanyaruchinya camp for displaced in Goma. Since April, the conflict between the army and the M23 rebel group in North Kivu has forced 340,000 people to flee their homes. Many are staying in impromptu Internally Displaced People (IDP) camps just outside Goma. 60,000 people have sought refuge in Kanyaruchinya (a small village to the north of the town). Cholera is already present in the Kanyaruchinya camp and in Goma, and the camps that are receiving displaced people are seriously short of water and sanitation facilities. Humanitarian aid has been too slow in arriving.

Suspected Islamist militants have massacred at least 70 Christians in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), leaving decapitated bodies inside a church. The brutal attack, believed to be carried out by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), occurred in Ituri province, a region plagued by insurgent violence.

Eyewitnesses reported that the assailants stormed the church, killing worshippers and beheading several victims before fleeing. The ADF, a militant group linked to ISIS, has intensified attacks on Christian communities in the area.

Local authorities and humanitarian groups have condemned the atrocity, calling for urgent international intervention to curb ongoing extremist violence in the DRC. Security forces have launched an investigation as families mourn their loved ones.