Christian Village in Mali ‘virtually wiped out’ after jihadists massacre 100

Originally published in CBN News

Approximately 100 Christians were massacred by Muslim terrorists in the West African nation of Mali this month.

BBC reports that on June 9, armed Fulani Muslim militants invaded a predominately Christian village in Sobame Da, and killed men, women, and children.

Officials say they found at least 95 bodies. The attackers also killed animals and set fire to houses.

“About 50 heavily armed men arrived on motorbikes and pickups,” a survivor named Amadou Togo told the AFP agency.

“They first surrounded the village and then attacked – anyone who tried to escape was killed.”

“No-one was spared – women, children, elderly people,” he added.

No terror group claimed responsibility for the massacre.

“Right now we have 95 dead civilians. The bodies are burned, we are continuing to look for others,” a local official told AFP.

The Christian persecution watchdog group Open Doors reported last week that every person who died was a Christian.

A security source at the scene told AFP that the village “had been virtually wiped out.”

West Africa is home to some of the most brutal attacks against Christians in recent years that have claimed thousands of lives.

Mali was thrown into unrest after Islamic jihadists took over the country in 2012. The violence got so severe the entire Malian government resigned in April.

Open Doors encourages Christians to use the following points to pray for their fellow believers in West Africa:

“Pray that God would be near to our brokenhearted brothers and sisters in Mali and throughout Africa. Ask God to be tangibly close.

Ask God to pour out His Spirit of love, order and calm over these communities. Pray for safety and protection in the days ahead.

Ask God to intervene in this violence and bring the persecutors to justice. These attacks have gone on for too long.

As we see the magnitude of these attacks and previous ones, pray that God would end this movement.

Pray that God’s grace and mercy would be at work in this tragedy.

Pray with Christians and church leaders in the Sahel as God works through them to bring His comfort and strength.”