Muslim extremists kill six Christians off the coast of Kenya, Evangelical Focus

Muslim extremists in Kenya, including suspected Somali militants, killed six Christians in southeastern Kenya between 1am and 3am on Monday, January 3rd.

Members and sympathizers of the Somali militant group Al Shabaab were suspected of joining local Muslim extremists in attacks in Widho, Majembeni Mpeketoni, on the Kenyan coast in Lamu County, local residents said.

The attackers, some in Al-Shabaab outfits and others in Islamic clothing, began with the kidnapping of a well-known Christian coconut palm seller, Francis Kaburi, who forced him off one of his trees at 7:00 a.m. on Sunday morning (January 2), said Joyce Wanjiru, the wife of one of the other Christians who were killed.

Her husband, Joseph Mwangi Maina, received a call from Kaburi on Monday (January 3) at 1am saying that he was kidnapped by Muslims, that his life was in danger and that They kept three other Christians in a shop belonging to John Murimi in Widho, she said.

Murimi, Peter Maingi and Peter Musyoka were meeting in prayer in the shop when the militants arrested them.

“Then the call ended,” Wanjiru told Morning Star News. “The Loading was then lit and the three died in there. “

The attackers arrived at Mwangi Maina at 2 a.m., his wife Wanjiru said. “Kaburi called out to my husband to leave the house,” she said. “Then he opened the door and went out.”

The attackers spoke both Somali and Kenya’s Kiswahili language, and accused her husband, Mwangi Maina, of refusing to return to Islam, she said.

Mwangi Maina, a non-Somali woman who grew up a Christian in Kenya, converted to Islam seven years ago but returned to Christianity two years later, she said.

“You are accused him of refusing to become a Muslim and therefore being an enemy of spreading a bad religion“Said Wanjiru.

“Soon he was begging her not to kill him, and after that my husband was moaning and screaming. The children started crying very loudly and the attackers forced us to leave the house. “

Their children, ages 15, 12, 10 and 4, fled when Muslim extremists set their home on fire, She said. Neighbors from Wanjiru’s Kikuyu tribe and their dialect arrived when the attackers were leaving with Kaburi.

“My husband had just been beheaded and his head rested on his back,” Wanjiru told Morning Star News.

From there, the attackers got to the home of Murimi, the Kenyan Christian of non-Somali descent who was killed in the fire in his shop. When the attackers found Murimi’s wife, Grace Wanjiru and four children, ages 12, 10, 8 and 2, they forced them out and set their home on fire.

The attackers went to the home of another non-Somali Christian, Maina Jigi. Local residents said the Muslim extremists set fire to his home and burned Jigi at around 2:30 a.m.

When the attackers next arrived at Kaburi’s home, they found that his family members had fled, Joyce Wanjiru said.

“A fire was seen in Kaburi’s house around 3:00 am,” she said. “We went to the police station in Widho, and the next day Kaburi’s body was found burned beyond recognition in his house.”

Mwangi Maina and Murimi were members of the Redeemed Gospel Church. The other four Christians killed were members of the Pentecostal Evangelical Fellowship of AfricaSources said.

All of Kaburi’s property, including his motorcycle, was destroyed and a Morning Star News representative accompanied by a security guard was found visiting the area.

Local residents said that only Christians were targeted in the attacks. Of five houses set on fire, one belonged to a Christian-friendly Muslim, the rest belonged to Christians, and only Christians were killed, local residents said.

“No Muslims were killed; They had been informed of the attack and therefore moved away from the area where the killings and the houses were set on fire, “the representative said.

The families who have lost loved ones are traumatized, homeless, with no food and clothing, including school uniforms, she said.

“The situation on site is so bad – the people fled for their lives because fear has gripped the whole area of ​​Widho,” said the representative.

Please pray for the families affected. The situation is tense; People fled the area fearing for their lives. The government must increase security for Christians and churches in this area. “

the The coastal region of Kenya, especially Lamu, is predominantly Muslim and extremists are trying to make it an independent Islamic zone, She said.

The fact that the attackers are suspected of being a mix of Al Shabaab and local Muslim extremists is a signal for Christians in the region to be on alert, the representative said.

In June 2014, attacks in and near the Mpeketoni area killed more than 60 people. Al Shabaab, a militant group based in Somalia, accepted responsibility

In addition to attacks on non-Muslims on Kenya’s coast, rebels from Al-Qaeda allied Al Shabaab have carried out several attacks in Kenya since Kenyan forces in October 2011 in response to terrorist attacks on tourists and others on Kenya’s coast.

Somalis generally believe that all Somalis are Muslim from birth and anyone Somalis who become Christians can be charged with apostasy, which is punishable by death.

The Somali constitution establishes Islam as the state religion and prohibits the spread of any other religionaccording to the US State Department. It also requires that laws conform to the principles of Sharia (Islamic law) with no exceptions when applying to non-Muslims.

Kenya 49th place on the World Watch List of Open Doors 2021 the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian; Somalia took third place.

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– Muslim extremists kill six Christians on the Kenyan coast

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