At least 15 people have been reported dead after an attack on a Catholic church in Burkina Faso on Sunday.
The attack happened in Essakane village, in Oudalan province. The area lies near Burkina Faso’s border with Mali within the north-east of the country.
The BBC reports that gunmen carried out the attack during a Sunday service on the church.
Abbot Jean-Pierre Sawadogo said that 12 people were killed immediately and one other three died later in hospital.
According to the report, it’s suspected that the gunmen were Islamist militants.
Churches have been increasingly targeted in Burkina Faso as Islamist groups with links to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State have taken hold of parts of the country.
Burkina Faso ranks twentieth within the Open Doors World Watch List of top 50 countries where Christians suffer the worst persecution owing to the spread of Islamic extremism, political instability and widespread displacement.
There are an estimated 5.3 million Christians within the country, out of a complete population of just below 24 million.
“Burkina Faso was the epitome of spiritual cohesion, but Islamic militant influence has managed to erode much of the peaceful coexistence between Muslims and Christians,” said Open Doors.
