Source: www.barnabasfund.org
Date: January 6, 2020
Two pastors were shot dead by Muslim militants as they travelled together by car after a Christmas service on 25 December in the Central African Republic (CAR).
A Barnabas Fund contact said Pastor Paul Djirobe was driving from his church in Batangafo to Bouca to the home of Pastor Michael Radjino, a visiting coordinator of a group of evangelical churches, when they were attacked by Seleka jihadists. Both men were shot in the head.
Militants continued shooting, preventing efforts to recover the bodies. The men had to be buried later at the scene of the attack. The congregations have asked for prayers for the bereaved.
The Christian-majority Central African Republic has been blighted by violence since 2013, when the Seleka Islamist armed group briefly overthrew the government. Despite the agreement of a ceasefire in June 2017, Christian communities continue to be the targets of attacks. Violence continues between Seleka Islamists and “anti-balaka” militia, who misleadingly call themselves “Christians”, despite their actions being condemned by church leaders. In November 2018, more than 40 people were killed and many were forced to flee when members of an Islamist militia attacked a Christian mission in Alindao.