Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, May 15, 2019 / 23:00 pm
Just one day after six Catholics were murdered by gunmen in Burkina Faso, four more Catholics were shot and killed in the northwest African country.
On Monday, unknown gunmen interrupted a religious procession in a village near Kongoussi, a northwest city of the Bam Province. After releasing the children, the assailants killed four adult worshipers and burned a Marian statue, according to reports.
"We will not be bogged down by the religious attacks," said Cardinal Philippe Ouédraogo, archbishop of Ougadougou, CNN reported.
The previous day, a group of gunmen attacked a Catholic church in Dablo, located in a nearby province. They shot and killed five men, including a priest, during Mass.
An estimated 20 to 30 men were believed to be involved with Sunday's attack. They burned down the church, and also set fire to a health center and a few nearby shops, according to state media.
In recent years, Burkina Faso has seen an increase in terrorist activity from jihadist groups, including al-Qaeda affiliates. Human Rights Watch recently reported that the violence has displaced tens of thousands of villagers this year alone.
Last December, the government declared a state of emergency in several northern provinces as a result of these ongoing attacks, Reuters reports.
Five teachers were murdered in an attack last Friday. In April, four Catholics were killed in a separate church attack, and five parishioners and a pastor were shot down in a Protestant church.
Following Sunday's attack, Pope Francis offered his prayers for the victims and communities of Burkina Faso.
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"The Holy Father learned with sorrow the news of the attack on the church in Dablo, in #BurkinaFaso. He prays for the victims, for their families and for the whole Christian community of the country," papal spokesman Alessandro Gisotti wrote on Twitter May 13.