The St Andrew's Anglican Church in Mandera, Nigeria has made the decision to close its doors following the death of 11 members who were killed in attacks against non-Muslims by al-Shabaab.
In a phone interview with Open Doors, Elijah Kinyua said nine of his church members died in the quarry massacre on December 2, while two were lost in the Makkah Travelers bus attack on November 23.
Gunmen belonging to al-Shabaab, the Somali extremist Islamist group, stole into a labourer's camp at a Kormey stone quarry, 15 kilometers from Mandera, in the early hours of December 2, shooting 36 non-Muslim workers at point-blank. Witnesses said that at least two of the victims were beheaded.
Just a little over a week before the attack, the Islamist rebels hijacked a bus travelling to Nairobi. They left a total of 28 people killed, at least 19 of which were Christians. Most were teachers returning to the capital for the Christmas holidays.
According to the Guardian, Kenyan police said the al-Shabaab extremists singled out the 28 passengers who could not recite the Shahada, an Islamic creed declaring oneness with God. Those who failed to recite the creed were ordered to lie down in a line.
Douglas Ochwodho, the only survivor of those who were selected for execution, said two rebels then began shooting those on the ground. One gunman started from the right and one from the left. Ochwodho only survived apparently because each gunman thought the other had already shot him.
The al-Shabaab group said the killings were in retaliation for the raids carried out on four mosques in Kenya.
With the unrest and violence plaguing the neighbourhood, St Andrew's future remains uncertain.
Kinyua reported, "We have closed the church. We (the church leadership) will decide later on whether or not to reopen. But for now things are not good on the ground."
