April 2023 Persecution Magazine

WWW.PERSECUTION.ORG
APRIL 2023
PERSECU ION
ADF SPECIAL REPORT
PERSECU ION
PERSECU ION
ADF WAGES WAR AGAINST
CHRISTIANS, LEAVING A SEA
OF ORPHANS IN ITS WAKE
PERSECU ION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
PERSECU ION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
PERSECU ION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
PERSECUTION.ORG 1

Contents
APRIL 2023
FEATURES
After decades of violent
extremism, when will it
end?
RECURRING
04
06
08
CRISIS IN THE
CONGO
YOUR HANDS AND FEET
ICC NEWSROOM
12
THREE DAYS OF
DARKNESS
A teenager’s heroic
journey after ADF
capture and captivity.
OUR MISSION: Since 1996, ICC has served the global
persecuted church through a three-pronged approach of
advocacy, awareness, and assistance. ICC exists to bandage
the wounds of persecuted Christians and to build the church
in the toughest parts of the world.
ICC Projects Made Possible by Supporters
Your Source for Persecution News
14
SOLACE FOR
CHRISTIANS IN BUNIA
Region provides an oasis
of safety but overwhelms
resources.
ON THE COVER
Orphaned children rest near the
entrance of their orphanage in
the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. Their parents were killed
by ADF rebels. Read more on p.18.
Photo: International Christian Concern
18
ORPHANED IN
ADF CARNAGE
ICC steps in to
supply orphans with
necessities.
“...TAKE UP THE SHIELD OF FAITH, WITH WHICH
YOU CAN EXTINGUISH ALL THE FLAMING ARROWS
OF THE EVIL ONE.”
EPHESIANS 6:16
@persecuted @persecutionnews @internationalchristianconcern International Christian Concern
DONATIONS: International Christian Concern (ICC) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) (all
donations tax-deductible). ICC makes every effort to honor donor wishes in regards to
their gifts. Occasionally, a situation will arise where a project is no longer viable. ICC
will redirect those donated funds to one of our other funds that is most similar to the
donor’s original wishes.
A Wave of Love in a Sea of Orphans
This past year, some of our staff ventured to the
war-torn, out-of-control Democratic Republic
of Congo.
What they saw on the ground was worse than what
we imagined. And the trip proved more dangerous
than I am comfortable with.
Our team met with Christian victims of the brutal
Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a ruthless Islamist
rebel group that is the epitome of evil. ADF forces
tear through villages and leave carnage and a lifetime
of trauma for survivors. We do not sugarcoat
things for our Western comfort. Children described
how their parents were killed in front of them. Babies
found still clinging to their dead mothers. A sea
of orphans.
What breaks the Lord’s heart must shred ours, too.
I often describe International Christian Concern
(ICC) as the Special Forces of persecution ministry,
as we get into areas where other organizations do
not go. We make contacts, interview survivors, rescue
who we can, and slowly rebuild because of your
love and support. This trip, however, proved more
dangerous for our staff – but the Lord protected and
supplied and opened and closed doors.
We have a responsibility to tell the world what’s
taking place in the Congo. It’s ugly, brutal stuff. At
the same time, we give praise to Jesus as we see
lives changed, widows starting over, and a glimmer
of hope because of our faithful donors. We share
those successes in the pages that follow. Real survivors
who have experienced unimaginable horrors.
Together, we wrap our loving arms around them.
Remind them that we are here. They are our brothers
and sisters. And see how the Lord puts the pieces
back together now and for eternity. We also pray
for the oppressors.
Like you, we want to rescue everyone. We pray that
the Lord leads us to those we can help, and we can
wisely use the resources that He faithfully provides.
To serve and grow the body of Christ.
Please know how much you mean to them and us.
God bless you and your faithfulness.
JEFF
Jeff King, President
International Christian Concern
Author: The Last Words of the Martyrs and
Islam Uncensored
© Copyright 2023 ICC, Washington, D.C., USA. All rights reserved.
STAFF
Publisher Jeff King
Permission to reproduce all or part of this publication is granted
MEMBER
Editor Mike Anderson
provided attribution is given to ICC as the source.
Designer Hannah Campbell
2 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 3

Your Hands and Feet
ICC PROJECTS MADE POSSIBLE BY SUPPORTERS
Intan’s Story
SOUTHEAST ASIA
I was born and raised in Aceh, the city
with the most significant percentage of
the Muslim population in Indonesia. I once
worked for a paper company in East Aceh.
I worked in paper smelting – recycling old/
used paper into newspaper.
When I worked, I liked to read the writing
on old paper. I accidentally took a piece of
paper with the words, “All power in heaven
and on earth has been given to me.” I was
curious about this article and kept this
paper in my wallet.
After work, I showed the mosque’s imams
a paper about “humans who have power
in heaven and on earth.” But they replied,
RESTORE: LIVES & COMMUNITIES
“There is no need to study because it is not
Islamic teachings, and if there is a person,
it is Muhammad.” When I heard it, I was
even more curious because the Quran does
not write about Muhammad as a powerful
human being other than Allah himself.
One day I went to a church to ask about
it, but the pastors said, “We can’t tell you
that because we have different ideologies.”
I understand that because they were afraid
that I would betray the church or scold
them.
One day, I got a job at a timber company.
One of my coworkers was a Christian. When
I talked to him, I remembered the writing
Photo: Umar Ben / Unsplash
I got a few years ago. I asked about the
“man in power.” He gave me a small Bible. I
started reading and then found out that the
person speaking was JESUS, who wrote in
the book of Matthew 28:18. I was amazed.
How come? I wanted to study Christianity.
I returned to Aceh. I spoke to my fiancé to
learn about Jesus, but he disagreed, and
we ended up breaking up.
I started studying the Christian faith with
a pastor. He is a priest who comes from
Aceh. After six months of study, I was then
baptized. I met a Christian man, and then
I got married.
When I embraced my new religion, my
family cut ties with me due to pressure
from the whole family. My friend once took
me to the forest and then tied me up. My
captors interrogated me and forced me to
say two sentences of the creed and recite
the Quran. I then read the Quran in Arabic,
and when they saw that I could read the
Quran, they finally let me go.
I entered a theology school to learn
more about Christianity. Now I serve the
Christian community and disciple them to
become evangelists to Muslims in Aceh.
Currently, we live in Medan, at my
husband’s sister’s house, because I can
no longer live in Aceh. We need a housing
unit for shelter and a temporary shelter for
Acehnese people who believe in the Lord
Jesus but have experienced expulsion and
persecution from their families in Aceh.
A SAFE PLACE TO CALL HOME
ICC provided the couple with a place to
live as well as space for other persecuted
Christians looking for temporary housing.
“My family and I are very grateful and
happy for ICC. We will never forget this act
of kindness, as we have been struggling
for a long time to pay rent. ICC has been
a source of hope and blessing for us. God
sent his servant from ICC so we could rent
a house. Thank you. ICC has become an
extension of God’s hand for us.”
4
Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 5

ICC Newsroom
HEAD TO OUR WEBSITE, PERSECUTION.ORG, FOR THE LATEST NEWS
YOUR SOURCE FOR PERSECUTION NEWS
Christian Families
Denied Rations
from Indian
Government
Christians on Alert in Tanzania
The U.S. Embassy in Tanzania issued
a security alert to all Westerners
and the public on Jan. 25, following
intelligence of a possible terrorist
attack. Reports indicate that Tanzania
has been infiltrated by the Islamic State
(IS) jihadists due to its proximity to the
Muslim-dominated province of Cabo
Delgado in northern Mozambique. A
local church leader has asked believers
to be alert and prayerful, and not take
the security warning lightly.
Ten Christian families in Bara Chomri
village in Madhya Pradesh were
denied government incentives by
the village administration because
they were Christians.. According
to local sources, these Christians
have been under duress and abuse
by radical Hindu nationalists since
they embraced their faith four
years ago.
EARTHQUAKE COVERAGE
Rising From the Rubble
By now, all of us have heard of the deadly
earthquakes in southern Turkey and
northern Syria. As widespread relief
efforts continue, International Christian
Concern (ICC) is partnering to bring relief
to persecuted Christians living in the area.
In tragedies like this, Christians can
be a witness for Christ as they serve
their communities. They demonstrate
the example of Christ’s love with their
neighbors, even with their persecutors,
who are all suffering through this shared
catastrophe.
Would you join us in praying for our
suffering brothers and sisters in the region?
Lord, you hear the cries of the many
who are suffering from the devastating
earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. We pray
collectively for those who know You, those
who desire to know You, and those who
do not know You. We pray for the tens of
thousands who have died who didn’t know
Christ, and we pray for those who did. We
pray for the families who have lost loved
ones and those who don’t know if their
loved ones are alive or dead.
In an area where Christians are heavily
persecuted, we pray for our brothers and
sisters to be a light to their neighbors and
those who have previously persecuted
them. We pray our brothers and sisters
show the compassion and love of Christ to
stir their persecutors’ hearts to desire to
know You. We pray for the strength of our
brothers and sisters and for them to seek
refuge in You.
We pray for all searching for warm shelter
in a cold, wet winter. We pray that you
open doors and provide resources such as
food, shelter, and blankets. We pray for
healing and restoration in an area that has
been the victim of a decades-long war and
already had limited infrastructure.
Lord, please guide our organization to use
its resources wisely to aid our suffering
brothers and sisters in this heavily
persecuted area. Amen.
Three Christians Killed by Government
Forces in Ethiopia
Three churchgoers were killed in
Ethiopia after attackers opened fire on a
church in the city of Shashimani, in the
populous Oromia state. The assailants
were government special forces who
perpetrated the attack amid the growing
tension within the Ethiopian Orthodox
Tewahedo Church, according to local
church sources.
To find out how you can help and donate, please visit: www.persecution.org/earthquake-relief or scan the QR Code.
6 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 7

Crisis in the Congo
When Will It End?
After decades of violent extremism, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF)
terror group formally affiliated itself with Islamic State in 2019. It must
be stopped.
Allied, democratic—what is not to like?
The ADF may sound like a commendable
organization, but the reality is it cares
nothing for democracy or freedom. In fact,
it is an Islamist extremist group that has long
caused mass devastation and destruction in
the Christian-majority, eastern Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC), where it
routinely conducts mass murder, extortion,
and destruction of property.
Many claim the group is only Islamic in name,
but they have strengthened their ties with
the Islamic State (IS) in recent years and
increasingly use the language of extremist
Islamic ideology.
In 2020, just a year after ADF officially became
an IS affiliate, ADF leader Musa Baluku shared
in a propaganda video asserting that the ADF
had dissolved and was fully incorporated into
the Islamic State conglomerate. Though many
believe the relationship between ADF and IS
is looser than Baluku’s words would suggest.
While the international community
recognizes the extreme danger posed by
ADF, it does not seem to fully consider the
religious component of the ADF movement.
In searching for long-term solutions to the
terror group, the world must address not just
the economic roots of the insurgency but also
the ideological ones. It is vital that the world
first recognize the persecution happening and
address it accordingly.
To learn more about the
ADF, scan the QR code
with your mobile device to
download our Persecutor
of the Year report, or visit:
www.persecution.org/poy.
FORMS OF
PERSECUTION
ASSASSINATION
MARTYRDOM
ATTACKS ON LIFE
& PROPERTY
DENIAL OF
RIGHTS
DIRECT
ASSASSINATIONS AND
MARTYRDOM: ADF has killed
dozens of individuals in Christian
areas, including pastors.
ATTACKS ON LIFE AND
PROPERTY: ADF’s modus
operandi is to attack and destroy
communities it has chosen to
victimize. The ADF is known
to burn down churches in
communities it visits.
INDIRECT
DENIAL OF RIGHTS: ADF is
notorious for kidnapping children
to serve as child soldiers or suicide
bombers. This practice has drawn
international condemnation.
1995 1995
2015
2020
TIME LINE OF
EVENTS
ADF formed in eastern DRC to
overthrow the Ugandan government.
1997-2012
ADF is beaten back to remote parts
of DRC but develops deep economic
roots.
2013
ADF resumes its violent attacks with
a campaign against the Congolese
military.
2015
ADF leader Jamil Mukulu flees
to Tanzania but is arrested and
extradited to Uganda.
2019
Under the new leadership of
Musa Baluku, ADF forges official
ties with Islamic State.
2021
The United States designates
ADF as a terror group.
~ 1,000 FIGHTERS
UNDER THE ADF FLAG
ACCORDING TO UN ESTIMATES
8 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 9

ICC staff fly to their next village while visiting DRC.
The treacherous drive involved many checkpoints and
game plans if ICC staff were ambushed by terrorists.
An orphanage ICC traveled to and later provided
assistance due to the orphan crisis in the DRC.
One of the places ICC works is the Democratic Republic of the
Congo (DRC), and most Westerners could not point to it on a
map.
It is unfortunately an extremely dangerous place; it is war-torn and
radical, armed Islamic terrorists, including the terrorist group the
ADF, have been trying to take over for years now.
The sea of victims from these terrorist attacks never seems to end.
We have been working quietly in the country for the last couple of
years, taking trips with our Africa-based staff, surveying the land,
and evaluating victims’ needs. We have asked ourselves: can we be
an effective helping hand? Can we work behind that curtain that is
so dangerous to get in?
Most recently, one of our U.S.-based staff met with our Africa-based
staff and traveled to the DRC. It was an extremely harrowing trip,
involving multiple cars and plane rides, police escorts, and numerous
exit strategies if we were targeted and attacked by terrorists.
There’s no way we could help all the refugees that came in. We
heard stories of Islamic terrorists who would meet with the pastor
of a church and threaten to attack Sunday worship if the church did
not hand over money. And it’s happening all the time.
These same terrorists will also invade Christian villages around the
DRC, shooting indiscriminately to kill everyone. From that, an orphan
crisis emerges. Every orphanage we went to was overwhelming. We
visited one orphanage that had a capacity of 100, and there were
more than 300 orphaned children crammed there, with no place
else to live and no one to care for them.
This is the work we do together: it’s life and death work; it’s God’s
work, and it’s a work of mercy. And these are the stories of those
whom we have rescued and shown God’s love to.
10 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 11

A TEENAGER’S HEROIC JOURNEY AFTER ADF CAPTURE
AND CAPTIVITY.
BY KATE PISELLI
It was a hot June day in the war-torn region of eastern
DRC. I sat across from 18-year-old Matthew and listened
as he calmly narrated his story through an interpreter.
His younger sister, nine-year-old Sarah, sat to his right. She
stared ahead blankly as he spoke.
Just one month earlier, the two siblings were forced to
watch as Islamic Terrorists brutally butchered both of their
parents.
“When they were shooting people, they were speaking
Arabic, yelling ‘Allahu Akbar’…,” Matthew spoke matterof-factly.
“The rebels were Muslim (extremists), cutting
some on their heads and others on the neck. When they
killed somebody, they said, ‘We praise Allah.’”
The rebels, Matthew later told me, were members of
the ADF, the largest rebel group in the conflict-ridden
DRC. Though many claim that the group is only Islamic
in name, they have in recent years been increasing their
relationship with the IS and in 2021 were designated as an
affiliate of ISIS.
For Matthew, the motive behind ADF’s destruction led to a
day that would change his life forever.
On May 13, 2022, Matthew, Sarah, and their three other
siblings were home with their parents when dozens of
ADF fighters ambushed their village. While the children
fled into the bushes, the fighters caught and killed their
parents. Hours later, the terrorists found the group of
siblings and took them, along with 20 other villagers, as
hostages.
“They took us into the hills. We traveled for three days,
and they told me they were taking us to the very big camp
where everything would be explained,” said Matthew.
He added that his captors were forcing several of the
hostages to become Muslims. Their goal, he was told, was
to Islamize all of the Congo and spread Islam throughout
East Africa.
“If you say, ‘Yes I will become a Muslim,’ they will take you
outside for training to become a rebel. If you refuse, then
they will kill you. For me, I escaped before having to make
my decision.”
Three days after their abduction, soldiers of the Congolese
national army stormed the ADF hideout. Matthew and
Sarah were among the few Christians rescued that day.
Later, the two would find out that their three siblings also
escaped and were in a town a few hours away. The five
brothers and sisters are now hoping to reunite and live
together as a family once again. Through your generous
donations, ICC is working to make this dream a reality.
Please pray for Matthew, Sarah, and the rest of their
family, that the Lord brings them healing and gives them
the hope only He can provide. Please also continue to pray
for the healing of those traumatized by violence in the
DRC, and for the Lord to comfort those who are grieving
the loss of loved ones, as well as for the love of Jesus to
redeem the souls of those who persecute the church.
Photo of Matthew who was held captive by ADF rebels
for three days.
12 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 13

Solace for
Christians in Bunia
REGION PROVIDES AN OASIS OF SAFETY
BUT OVERWHELMS RESOURCES.
Komanda is a town of palm trees and lush
green vegetation, wide, hard-packed dirt
roads, and tin-roofed structures. To 70-yearold
Kobisi and her five grandchildren, it was home
– until the day the ADF arrived.
The violent Islamic rebels invaded, speaking
a language Kobisi could not understand. She
implored God for protection and fled into the
forest.
Tragically, her story is not unique.
Kobisi survived that day, but already a widow
and now separated from her family and unable
to return home, she did what hundreds of
thousands of others have done: made her way
to Bunia, a city that has become a refuge for an
estimated two hundred thousand victims of ADF
attacks. With a total population estimated to be
1.3 million, Bunia hosts four camps for internally
displaced people (IDP).
Yet Bunia and the surrounding region, overflowing
with destitute people and an infrastructure
woefully unable to accommodate the escalating
population, is no oasis of ease. In one camp less
than 30 miles from the city, the UN reported
an estimated 1,300 people to every toilet –
and sewage freely flowing in areas of dense
population.
Thankfully for Kobisi, it was in Bunia that she was
able to reunite with her five grandchildren.
However, challenges abounded – the greatest
being finding food. Kobisi sought out odd jobs
to earn a little money to buy food, yet this was
desperately inadequate to provide for all the
needs of her grandchildren.
Like so many others, Kobisi needed aid in getting
established and becoming financially selfsufficient
as she rebuilt her life. She became one
of the many refugees in Bunia that ICC has come
14 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 15

TOP ROW: Kobisi works in her home garden.
OPPOSITE BOTTOM RIGHT: Tibasima’s wife after she was
reunited with her husband, separated by ADF militants.
LEFT, MIDDLE AND BOTTOM: Solange shows off a dress
she made with her new sewing machine.
alongside to lighten the burden.
ICC helped Kobisi generate income and offered her
household essentials, for which she was profoundly
grateful. “This is something I never imagined would
happen to my family or me,” she said, “I thank God and
ICC for the assistance that I call ‘Manna from Heaven,’
and with this, I know our lives will never be the same
again!”
Solange is another woman who has settled in Bunia
and found hope and opportunity through ICC’s help,
but the path that led her there was one of horrific pain
and sorrow:
“Around 7 p.m., eight ADF [rebels] broke into our house…
They tied us up and took us with them. My husband
had been carrying a lot of the ADF’s vandalized luggage,
and when he said he was tired, he was beheaded on
the spot. They also killed my son and my sister-in-law
in our presence, leaving her nine-month-old baby. They
left the bodies on the road.”
The nightmare continued when the ADF separated
Solange from her other family members, took her to a
different camp, tied her up, injured her, and raped her.
She escaped after 51 days.
She made her way to Bunia, and a host family took her
in, but she had no money to pay for the medical care she
needed, and her health prevented her from doing manual
labor. Solange needed a way to support herself on a longterm
basis, so ICC provided her with a sewing machine and
fabric, house rent and home furnishings, clothing and food,
and funds to receive medical care.
As God works through ICC to reach those who have been
forcibly relocated to Bunia, the trauma of the past can begin
to fade.
ICC REUNITES, SUPPLIES FAMILY
“Your assistance is beyond my imagination! Right now, we
no longer remember what we lost, and we know for the
time we are here in Bunia, we have a family! I am not afraid
of anything.
“We have nothing to give you in return, but we just give you
God and all the blessings in Deuteronomy 28.”
These are the appreciative words of Tibasima, a Christian,
a husband, a father, and a Bible school student who lost
everything he and his family had in an ADF attack in June
2022.
In the chaos, his wife and two of his children fled to Uganda,
while Tibasima and their four other children hid in the forest
for two months until he went to Bunia and his children
remained in the forest.
Tibasima was in agony knowing his children were at the
mercy of the brutal ADF fighters. He stayed connected but
had no money to bring them to the relative safety of Bunia.
ICC became aware of the family’s plight and reunited them,
supplying them with food, clothing, and household basics
like mattresses and utensils.
“We now have food to eat; we sleep well, and I have an
income-generating activity that will help me and my family,”
Tibasima’s wife said. “You have wiped away my tears!”
Manna from Heaven. Wiping away tears. Assistance beyond
imagination. Despite all they have lost, these are the phrases
of relief, comfort, and hope that resound from persecuted
believers who have persevered through tragedy and are
praising the Lord from Bunia.
16 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 17

Orphaned in
ADF Carnage
ICC STEPS IN TO SUPPLY
ORPHANS WITH NECESSITIES
Over and over the workers dug their shovels into the eastern Congo
ground, removing the dirt one shovelful at a time. Backbreaking
work, they spent a week digging four 15x15 ft holes in a small plot of
land the local chief had given for an important project – a venture that will
change the trajectory of life for more than 200 children.
But not just any children. These children, ranging in age from four months
to 21 years, have been orphaned by the ADF militants who stormed their
Christian villages and homes and murdered their parents and siblings… and
destroyed everything they owned. These 200 children have been rescued
from the front lines of war and are now living at Compassion Orphanage
in Butembo.
Recently, in just a matter of months, seven more babies were found in the
arms of their dead mothers when people went looking for survivors after
yet another ADF attack. The rescuers brought these babies to Compassion
Orphanage as well.
Yet the children’s home is operating in dire destitution–overcrowded and
stretched far beyond its capacity to provide for the basic survival needs
of so many children, let alone supply them with all they need to flourish
physically, emotionally, and spiritually in the wake of gut-wrenching
atrocities.
Compassion has been operating for 30 years and is led by Dorcas Kiharami
and her husband Pastor Immanuel Kiharami. Occupying a small plot of
land, there is no room to expand, and the needs are urgent – children
are starving and sick. They are getting sick from a lack of clean water, and
they have nowhere to sleep. They needed food, medicine, safe water, and
mattresses.
In 2022, ICC gave the orphanage emergency aid funds to help provide for
some of the most pressing needs, which included food, medicine, safe
water, and mattresses. However, given the ongoing nature of the conflict
and the long-term care the children need, something more sustainable had
to be done.
18 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 19

the orphaned children will learn fish breeding, and
income from the fish farm will be used to purchase
a field where the children can learn other farming
and agriculture skills, enabling them to sustain
themselves in the future.
Acknowledging the financial assistance received for
this project, Dorcas said, “This is a demonstration
of your great and deep concern for the orphaned
kids at the orphanage. You have responded
positively to James’ [divine] declaration that ‘Pure
and undefiled religion before God and the Father
consists in visiting orphans and widows in their
affliction’ (1:27).”
While not all the hardships these orphaned children
have faced and continue to face will be alleviated
with the fish farm, having nourishing food and a
new source of funds to provide for their needs will
play a profound role in bringing healing to their
bodies and souls.
Considering the small plot of land the chief
had given, a wise strategy for how to best
utilize the space was key. In conjunction with
the Kiharamis, ICC decided to construct and
launch a fish farm there. This dual-purpose
project would provide the orphanage with
an ongoing source of food and generate
income.
ICC’s partners in Butembo collaborated
with Dorcas to get the farm up and running
– about a six-month process – and it is
expected that the orphanage will begin
reaping the benefits of the farm this spring.
Dorcas brims with gratefulness as she
outlines all that will be achievable because
of the fish farms.
Children will have adequate food. Selling fish
eggs will allow caretakers to address specific
needs such as purchasing formula for
children under three years old. In addition,
20 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 21

A Heroine Has Fallen
CHRISTIAN WOMAN WHO SURVIVED AN ADF
ATTACK DIES AT AGE 87
Dorothy Mbasa, a heroine, has fallen. Such were the words proclaimed by the Christian community in her
village in the northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, at Dorothy’s funeral in November 2022.
Dorothy, 87, survived a terrorist attack carried out by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) Islamist rebel group
on Oct. 7, 2020. Eight Christians were killed in the attack, and several others were injured. While running away in
the night together with her family and other villagers, she was hit in the back by a bullet from the attackers that
incapacitated her. In the morning, she was taken to a nearby hospital, where she ended up staying for six months.
Efforts to help her to walk again were unsuccessful.
Two years later, Dorothy succumbed to the spinal injury that had caused her a lot of pain. Her son confirmed her
passing and commemorated her as “A woman of faith who remained steadfast in Christ until her last breath.”
Last year, ICC learned about Mama Dorothy’s condition. She was unable to stand or sit, spending all her time lying
on the bed, and she was only helped out of the house when it was necessary. Her son, a pastor at a nearby church,
shared about his mother’s situation,
“My mother has not been able to walk or sit unaided since the attack. She was also shocked and traumatized, and
there were times when she didn’t talk to anyone for a day or two. She needs a person all the time because her
lower body was paralyzed by the gunshot in her backbone.”
ICC provided Dorothy with a wheelchair, clothing, and food items. For a long time, she was able to get out of bed
and sit outside in the sun.
She told an ICC staff member, “My heart is overflowing with joy this day, for, after two years, I am now able to
move around and meet my friends here and go to the market to buy whatever I need. I was tired of staying in the
house, sitting all day in my bed. My family was also tired of carrying me every time I needed to wake up and go
out. Now I can push myself to go to the sun if I need to sit out, and I can go to the house when it begins to rain. I
am independent once again, although I cannot walk like I used to do.”
A mother who raised a family of eight in the ways of the Lord, and a woman who exemplified faith in Christ and
prayer, was put to rest on Nov. 23, 2022, after battling back pain and trauma caused by the ruthless ADF terrorist
group allied with the Islamic State (IS). Dorothy’s last words are an encouragement only to the suffering believers
in her village but also to the Democratic Republic of Congo as a whole.
She said, “I have lived all my days in Congo. I have seen plenty, stability, and prosperity in this great nation, but
I have also seen poverty, death, displacement, and desperation in our people. A country that used to feed and
protect its people has turned into a war zone, and Christians have been the most affected.”
Dorothy continued, “The hope that kept me going for all these years is because of trusting the King of kings who
remains faithful even when nations rage. My prayer is that Congo shall be saved from the hand of the terrorist and
the bloodthirst of the rebels.”
“I have lived all my days in Congo. I have
seen plenty, stability, and prosperity in
this great nation, but I have also seen
poverty, death, displacement, and
desperation in our people. A country that
used to feed and protect its people has
turned into a war zone, and Christians
have been the most affected.”
- DOROTHY MBASA
22 Persecution | APRIL 2023
PERSECUTION.ORG 23

We’d love to hear from you!
ICC
PO BOX 8056
SILVER SPRING, MD 20907
OR ONLINE AT
WWW.PERSECUTION.ORG
OR BY PHONE
800-ICC-5441
Giving via Will
Provide now for a future gift to ICC by including
a bequest provision in your will or revocable
trust. If you would like more information on
giving to ICC in this way, please give us a call at
1-800-ICC-5441.
PERSECU ION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
PERSECU ION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
PERSECU ION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN