40 Dead In Terror Attack On Christian Church

More than 40 Christians were slaughtered in a savage overnight terror attack on a Catholic church in Komanda, a small town in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), during a midnight vigil. The massacre, which occurred around 1 a.m. on July 27, has been claimed by the Islamic State-linked Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a group known for its brutal assaults on Christian communities.

Eyewitness accounts are harrowing. One survivor, speaking to Fox News, described the horror: “They killed those that met in the church hall. Those who tried to flee were caught and killed in the compound and running towards the road. People were sad. There was sadness everywhere.” The attackers used both firearms and machetes, cutting down men, women, and children in cold blood.

According to local officials, the death toll includes 15 men, 19 women, and 9 children. Several other children were reportedly abducted by the militants. In addition to the church, attackers torched nearby homes and shops, killing at least five more people in the surrounding village. Bodies were found strewn across the church compound and in nearby alleys.

The Congolese military called the attack a “large-scale massacre,” and suggested it may have been retaliation for recent offensives launched against the ADF. The group, originally based in Uganda, has embedded itself in the volatile Ituri province of eastern Congo for years, pledging allegiance to the Islamic State in 2019. Since then, they have intensified attacks, with a growing focus on Christian congregations.

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The international community has reacted with outrage. The U.S. State Department condemned the killings, calling it a heinous act of religious persecution. Members of Congress, human rights groups, and the United Nations have issued statements demanding greater efforts to stop the spread of Islamist violence in central Africa.

Pope Leo XIV issued a statement from the Vatican expressing “deep pain” over this brutal terror attack, and offered condolences to the grieving families and the Christian community in the region. “He’d pray for them,” a Vatican spokesman said. The Pope’s words echoed the sorrow felt across the Christian world as news of the massacre spread.

This is not the first time the ADF has carried out such an atrocity. Just months ago, in the same province, more than 70 Christians were killed in a similar attack on a Protestant church. The violence continues to escalate in Ituri, where religious tensions are now boiling over amid ineffective security measures and an under-resourced peacekeeping effort by the United Nations.

Survivors say the trauma is overwhelming. “There was crying and weeping everywhere,” one witness said. “Everything they had was lost. They have nothing now.”

The situation in eastern Congo has spiraled out of control. Despite ongoing military operations against jihadist forces, the Congolese government has failed to prevent repeated attacks. Civilians, especially those in Christian communities, remain vulnerable. The Komanda massacre now ranks as one of the deadliest anti-Christian terror attacks in recent African history.

A State Department spokesperson said to Fox on Thursday, “We condemn violent extremists targeting Christians who were congregating in prayer. Religious freedom is a fundamental right this Administration strongly supports.”