
38 killed as Islamic State-backed rebels attack church in Congo
Thirty-eight people were killed, 15 injured and several others were still missing, officials said.Christophe Munyanderu, a human rights activist present at the scene in Komanda, said shots were heard overnight but people at first thought it was thieves."The rebels mainly attacked Christians who were spending the night in the Catholic church," said Munyanderu."Unfortunately, these people were killed with machetes or bullets."The United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the DR Congo has condemned a recent resurgence in violence in the province where this attack happened. - EndsTune InMust Watch
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Business Standard
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- Business Standard
Houthis pledge to step up shipping attacks to pressure Israel on Gaza
The Houthis, who took control of Yemen's capital Sanaa in 2014, have been striking Israel and commercial vessels in the Red Sea after Israel's war with Hamas, which rules Gaza, began in October 2023 Bloomberg Houthi militants pledged to target ships of any company that deals with Israeli ports, escalating their military operations in a bid to increase pressure on Israel to further ease restrictions on the hunger-ravaged Gaza Strip. The targeted ships will be attacked 'in any location within the reach of our armed forces,' a spokesman for the Iranian-backed group, Yahya Saree, said in televised comments. 'All our military operations will be ceased immediately upon the cessation of aggression against Gaza and the lifting of the blockade.' More than $2 trillion of global seaborne trade had passed by the coast of Yemen per year — most of which were ships heading to and from the Suez Canal on journeys between Europe and Asia. Traffic plunged by about 70 per cent after the Houthis began attacking vessels in the area and has remained low despite a lull in attacks in 2025. Israel increased aid distribution to Gaza as it faces a growing international outcry over hunger in the shattered Palestinian enclave. The Israeli army on Sunday suspended some military operations to facilitate the movement of United Nations relief convoys and restored electricity to a desalination plant in Gaza for the first time since March. The Houthis have already been targeting ships that had ties to Israel. Earlier this month, the group carried out attacks that sank two cargo ships, killed three crew members and led to detention of 11 others. These were the first such assaults on merchant vessels since November. Israel has occasionally struck Houthi targets in Yemen in retaliation.


New Indian Express
an hour ago
- New Indian Express
‘Baseless charges': Church condemns Malayali nuns' arrest in Chhattisgarh
KOCHI: The arrest of two Malayali nuns in Chhattisgarh on Friday has triggered outrage, with Christian organisations demanding immediate and decisive action to curb religious fanaticism. Nuns Preetha Mary and Vandana Francis from the Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate under the Syro-Malabar Church in Cherthala, who were accompanying three girls, were arrested by the Chhattisgarh police at Durg railway station and charged with forced religious conversion and human trafficking. The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) said the nuns were arrested despite possessing written consent letters from the parents of the girls, who are over 18 years of age. The CBCI urged the state governments to ensure the safety and protection of all women, especially those in religious service, and sought the urgent intervention of the Union government to prevent such incidents. The Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council's (KCBC) Social Harmony and Vigilance Commission, in an official statement on Sunday, said the police's action was reportedly prompted by false and baseless allegations of religious conversion and human trafficking made by members of the Bajrang Dal. 'This distressing incident is part of a broader and deeply troubling pattern of increasing hostility towards Christians and missionary personnel across various Indian states. The weaponisation of anti-conversion laws by extremist groups is not only unjust but also poses a serious threat to the constitutional rights of religious minorities in the country. We affirm that Catholic missionaries do not engage in forced conversions,' the commission said. The CBCI said the Catholic Church will raise the issue on all appropriate platforms and 'strongly oppose any attempt to malign the dignity of religious nuns and priests or to curtail religious freedom.'
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First Post
an hour ago
- First Post
Over 40 killed in rebel attack in northeast DR Congo, ending brief regional calm
The Congolese army denounced the 'large-scale massacre', adding that 'around forty civilians were surprised and killed with machetes and several others were seriously injured'. read more This aerial view shows the town of Komanda, Ituri province, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on August 30, 2023. File Image: AFP More than 40 people were killed Sunday in an attack by Allied Democratic Forces rebels in northeastern DR Congo, ending a months-long period of regional calm, the UN mission and Congolese military said. The ADF, which pledged allegiance to Islamic State in 2019, raided a Catholic church in the town of Komanda where worshippers were gathered for prayer, residents told AFP by telephone from Bunia, capital of Ituri province. The attack killed 43 people including nine children, according to the UN peacekeeping mission in the country. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'These targeted attacks on defenseless civilians, especially in places of worship, are not only revolting but also contrary to all norms of human rights and international humanitarian law,' said Vivian van de Perre, deputy chief of the peacekeeping mission. The Congolese army denounced the 'large-scale massacre', adding that 'around forty civilians were surprised and killed with machetes and several others were seriously injured'. It said the ADF had decided to take 'revenge on defenseless peaceful populations to spread terror'. Local sources had reported an earlier death toll of at least 35. Lieutenant Jules Ngongo, army spokesman in Ituri, did not comment on the toll but confirmed the attack to AFP, saying 'the enemy is believed to have been identified among ADF' rebels. The bloodshed comes after months of calm in the region of Ituri, bordering Uganda. The last major attack by the ADF was in February, leaving 23 dead in Mambasa territory. The town of Komanda in Irumu territory is a commercial hub linking three other provinces – Tshopo, North Kivu, and Maniema. The ADF, originally Ugandan rebels who are predominantly Muslim, have killed thousands of civilians and ramped up looting and killing in northeastern DRC despite the deployment of the Ugandan army alongside Congolese armed forces in the area. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD At the end of 2021, Kampala and Kinshasa launched a joint military operation against the ADF, dubbed 'Shujaa', which has so far been unable to dislodge the group. The Congolese army promised to continue tracking the ADF and called on the population 'to remain extra vigilant and report any suspicious presence to the defense and security forces'.