A Muslim terror group slaughtered at least 89 Christians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) across two days, including 26 grieving Christians worshipping at a funeral service. Over 100 Christians were kidnapped, and 16 houses were burned down from the attacks, according to Open Doors.
The Rev. Mbula Samaki of the 55e CEBCE church in Mangurejipa says the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an Islamic militant group linked to ISIS, were armed with machetes and guns during the Sept. 10 attack in the village of Ntoyo, where men, woman and children were attending a funeral.
“They arrived and started killing,” Samaki said. “Those who tried to flee were shot dead, and others were killed with machetes.”
“It’s horrible what I saw. [Bodies of] women on mattresses in the living room ... others in the corridor, still others outside in the plot,” parish priest Abbé Paluku Nzalamingi said. “Some bodies are on the road, in plots close to the center of Ntoyo. They killed almost all the people gathered at the place of mourning.”
Pastor Paluku of the CECA20 church in Oicha called it a night of “sadness and desolation for Christians.”
Violence continued the following morning. Christians in DRC’s North Kivu region faced attacks across their villages, adding to the two-day death toll. Farmers in Potodu, who were camped in their farms during the attacks, also were slaughtered by ADF. The death toll among the Potodu farmers is currently 30.
An African partner of Open Doors spoke to Fox News Digital about the ongoing attacks. Her name was not revealed in order to protect her safety.
“If we take just August, there’s been over 10, we have documented 10 attacks, but there have been a lot more which go unreported,” she said. “And sometimes two or three villages are attacked at the same time.
“The people, they say we are tired, when will this come to an end? Because it’s every day you hear someone has been killed. You can find a family where two or three family members have been killed, or a child whose both parents have been killed. So it’s pain; it’s agony.”
Pastor Alili of the 3e CBCA church Njiapanda, whose church has received Christians fleeing Ntoyo asked believers to pray.
“Please, brothers and sisters, let us unite in prayer to counter the enemy,” Alili said. “God says if He does not watch over the house, those who watch, watch in vain. Let us pray together for the Christians of the east of the DRC.”
“We ask the Body of Christ to keep the church in eastern DRC in prayer,” a spokesperson for Open Doors’ work in sub-Saharan Africa said. “Pray for God's comfort, His provision to the displaced, and for His Spirit to give them strength to stand firm amidst these targeted attacked.”
Photo: Residents in Oicha, North Kivu, were seen clearing debris on August 17, 2025, following a series of deadly attacks blamed on ADF rebels. Between August 14 and 17, more than 50 civilians were killed across the Lubero and Beni territories, according to local and military officials.