08/10/2021 Mali (International Christian Concern) –At least 51 people were killed by Islamic militants on Sunday during village raids in Mali, said a district administrator.

“Houses were ransacked and burned to the ground and herds of livestock carried away, said the administrator’s note, which was seen by Reuters.”

According to the Daily Sun, the villages ransacked included Karou, Ouatagouna and Daoutegeft near Mali’s border with Niger.

“(They) massacred everyone,” a military officer told AFP International.

Open Doors listed Mali as the 28^th most dangerous country in the world to be a Christian. Islamic extremists have been able to overtake areas with weak governmental leadership and have capitalized on vulnerabilities created by COVID-19. Since a coup attempt in 2012, jihadists have had control over much of northern Mali and have been able to recruit and train their insurgents there.

Please pray for Mali’s leaders to fight for religious freedom, for the Lord to strengthen and multiply the country’s Christian community, and for jihadist groups to repent and accept the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

For interviews, please contact Addison Parker: press@persecution.org.