Massacre in Congo: ISIS-Linked Jihadists Behead 49 Christians, Including Children, During Church Service
by Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Staff
(Worthy News) – A horrific massacre unfolded Sunday in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where Islamic State-affiliated jihadists beheaded at least 49 Christians–nine of them children–during a church service in the village of Komanda. The attackers, members of the notorious Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), stormed a church where believers had gathered from surrounding villages to celebrate a Silver Jubilee and to pray for peace amid ongoing violence.
Witnesses say the attackers used machetes to slaughter worshipers, some of whom were killed inside the sanctuary, others caught and executed as they fled. Several children were abducted, though the exact number remains unclear. Many of the victims had already fled previous violence and had sought refuge in Komanda. “All of them were killed with machetes,” said Judith, a local church partner with Open Doors UK, who visited the site hours after the attack. “There was sadness upon sadness everywhere.”
The U.N. peacekeeping mission, MONUSCO, was forced to send earth-moving machinery to dig a massive crater in the village for a communal grave. “People were crying, weeping–some crying for their children who had been kidnapped. One woman cried for the man she was shortly due to marry,” Judith added. “Everything they had is lost.”
The assault is the latest in a brutal string of attacks by jihadist groups seeking to carve out an Islamic caliphate in the heart of Africa. While the world watches other crises, a silent slaughter continues in the DRC, where Christians–who make up roughly 95% of the population–have increasingly become targets of systematic terror.
“This is a crisis of biblical proportions,” said Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK and Ireland. “It’s like the slaughter of the innocents in the Bible. Women and children are being targeted, and nobody seems to care.”
A History of Suffering–and Revival
The tragedy in Komanda is only the latest chapter in Congo’s long and often bloody history. Once a Belgian colony marked by brutal exploitation and the violent extraction of rubber and minerals, the DRC gained independence in 1960. The country quickly descended into political chaos, followed by decades of dictatorship under Mobutu Sese Seko, and then two civil wars in the late 1990s and early 2000s that left over five million people dead–the deadliest conflict since World War II.
Amid warlords, militias, and foreign-backed rebellions, Christians in the Congo have endured unimaginable hardship. From village massacres to mass displacement, they have worshiped under the threat of death. Yet, in one of the most astonishing spiritual developments of the 20th and 21st centuries, the church in Congo has not only survived–it has flourished.
In the 1970s, evangelical and Pentecostal churches began to experience explosive growth. The number of Protestant Christians has grown from just over 10 million in 1970 to more than 60 million today. Indigenous revival movements, coupled with missionary efforts and a deep hunger for the Gospel, have transformed the spiritual landscape.
According to Open Doors, over 16 million Christians in Sub-Saharan Africa have been displaced due to religious persecution. In eastern Congo, Christians often abandon their homes at night and flee into the jungle to avoid being slaughtered in their sleep.
“They’d rather risk wild animals in the jungle than jihadists in their homes,” said Blyth.
A Cry for Action
Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, condemned the attack on X, calling for renewed urgency. “This deadly escalation in their targeting of Christians makes the peace process… even more urgent. We must focus all energies on eradicating these ISIS terrorists and forging a new regional economic path.”
Locals, however, remain skeptical about peace efforts. Judith expressed doubt that existing accords–such as the recent U.S.-brokered agreement between the DRC and Rwanda–will change anything unless they address the root of the violence: the ADF and their jihadist allies. “We have seen many peace accords which have not given any result,” she said. “The peace accord that is needed is the one with the ADF.”
She called on the Trump administration to pressure regional players like Uganda and Rwanda, whose forces are accused of destabilizing the region. “If President Trump could push Uganda and Rwanda to get out,” she said, “Congo would be fine.”
Open Doors warns that the attack in Komanda is not an isolated event. More than 80 Christians have been killed in July alone in similar assaults. Villagers in Komanda fear the militants are regrouping just miles away, and with no arrests made, another bloodbath could occur at any moment.
“The church is on the run,” Newhouse said. “But it is still alive. And it is crying out for help.”
As the sun sets over eastern Congo, the ground bears fresh scars–new graves, blackened buildings, and the sobs of survivors. But within the suffering, a resilient faith burns.
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