Five parishioners and the parish priest were killed outside a church in the northern part of the west African country of Burkina Faso over the weekend, in the latest attack against Christians there.
According to Reuters, up to 30 gunmen opened fire after a mass was celebrated in the Catholic church of Dablo. The terrorists then burned down the church, robbed a pharmacy and other businesses, before fleeing.
Violence by Muslim extremists has flared in Burkina Faso since 2016, and this is the third attack on a Christian place of worship in five weeks. Some 55 percent of the impoverished country’s residents are Muslim, with one fourth declaring themselves Christian.