In the latest religious attacks in Burkina Faso, at least 24 people were killed. Officials report that unidentified gunmen attacked a church in northern Burkina Faso, West Africa.
The attack took place on Sunday during a weekly service at a Protestant church in the village of Pansi in Yagha, a volatile province near the border with Niger.
A group of armed terrorists reportedly attacked the peaceful local population after having identified them and separated them from non-residents.
The regional governor Colonel Salfo Kabore said 24 people were killed, including the pastor, 18 are wounded and other individuals were kidnapped.
A resident of the nearby town of Sebba said Pansi villagers fled there for safety.
The attackers looted oil and rice from shops and forced three youth they kidnapped to help transport it on their motorbikes, he said.
An Alarming rate of Religious Attacks
The religious attacks have made Christians and churches become frequent targets in the north of the country.
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Last week, also in the Yagha province, a retired pastor was killed, and another pastor abducted by gunmen according to an internal security report for aid workers.
Violence has dramatically escalated in the once-peaceful West African nation.
Everyone is concerned that attacks against civilians, including Christians, are increasing “at an alarming rate”.
West Africa director for Human Rights Watch Corinne Dufka said the perpetrators of the attacks use victims’ links to government or their faith to justify the killings. She also said other attacks appear to be reprisal killings for killings by the government security forces.
More than 1,300 civilians were killed in targeted religious attacks last year in Burkina Faso. This is more than seven times from the previous year, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, which collects and analyses conflict information.
According to the government, the insecurity has created a humanitarian crisis with more than 760,000 people internally displaced.
