What No One Tells You About Christians Killed in 2020

Deaths continue to occur as they have for the past decade

While I was in the military, I read stories about Christians beheaded and killed in the Middle East and African countries. A few years ago, this made the headlines. Today, you have to search for these incidents that don’t make the front page news.

Nigeria is the current hotbed where most of these killings occur. Three terrorist groups conduct their attacks against local Christians. Boko Haram, ISIS, and al-Shabab commit these murders. These terrorist groups kill Christians in this religious war.

The open rural land in Africa is a perfect breeding ground for these terrorist organizations to grow and spread their beliefs. ISIS formed a splinter group in 2015 that is called the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

In Nigeria, the country is split between Islam in the north and Christians in the south. A majority of the deaths occur in the central area where these two groups meet. The International Christian Concern estimates that 50,000 to 70,000 Christians have been killed in the last decade of the West African nation.

Why are Christians persecuted in Nigeria?

There are several reasons why these groups kill Christian followers. They each have their own reasons just as some Christians have killed people of other religions. In the early 1990s, extremist Christians killed workers at abortion clinics.

Boko Haram

Boko Haram is set on removing all Western influence and they believe Christianity to be part of the influence. Boko Haram has also been called the Nigerian Taliban because of their religious similarities.

Boko Haram wants to create an Islamic caliphate or Islamic state under Muslim rule in the northeast part of Nigeria. This group is also located in Chad, Niger, and Cameroon.

ISWAP

ISWAP has similar goals as Boko Haram with a few differences. ISWAP attacks Christians as a form of retaliation for the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS who was killed October 26, 2019.

This Islamic group is the most prominent terrorist group in the area. They have as many as three times the number of fighters as the next largest group which is in Egypt.

The ISWAP is known for abducting workers in the region. They claimed responsibility for attacking a military outpost in December.

In 2019, the ISWAP group released a video showing showed 11 blind-folded men they shot and stabbed.

Fulani militants

Another faction in Nigeria, the Fulani militants, conducts attacks against local Christians. The Fulani are migrant herders who access land in the Middle Belt which is also used by Christians. The Fulani may be trying to retake this area which they believe is their land.

Religion is another driver as the Fulani are a predominantly Muslim population. They have been known to burn down churches, destroy Christian homes and shops and kill religious pastors.

Killings continue in 2020

The ISWAP killed another Christian in January with a young boy executes a Nigerian Christian.

We won’t stop until we take revenge for all the blood that was spilled.

The video was released by the ISIS’ Amaq ‘news agency’. ISIS has routinely used children as a form of propaganda in their videos to carry out their message.

This year Boko Haram and ISWAP have increased their attacks on Christians.

The President of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari condemned the killings and urged Nigerians not to let these terrorists divide them. He said the terrorists do not represent the millions of Islamists around the world.

References:

Nigeria is becoming world’s ‘biggest killing ground of Christians’

Islamic State Group In Nigeria Reportedly Executes Christian Hostages

Young boy executes Nigerian Christian prisoner in horrifying ISIS video

Christians, don’t forget that we too have killed in God’s name

Tom Handy is a top writer on Medium, former Quora writer, and father of two kids. He retired from the Army and sits on several non-profit boards. You can find him on Twitter @tomhandy1 and his publication Life is Like a Game.