Islamic State-backed rebels killed at least 43 people during an attack on a Catholic church in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on July 27, 2025, according to multiple reports from civil society leaders and security sources.
The assault occurred around 1 a.m. at a Catholic church in Komanda, located in Ituri province. Members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) stormed the church premises during a nighttime vigil, targeting worshippers with guns and machetes before setting fire to surrounding houses and shops.
Dieudonne Duranthabo, a civil society coordinator in Komanda, reported that searchers found the bodies of 38 people at the church scene, including 19 men, 15 women and nine children. “More than 21 people were shot dead inside and outside and we have recorded at least three charred bodies,” Duranthabo indicated to news agencies.
The death toll varies among different sources, with local civil society leaders reporting between 34 and 43 fatalities. A United Nations-backed radio station cited security sources confirming 43 deaths, while the Congolese military acknowledged a lower count of 10 confirmed fatalities in the church attack.
Lieutenant Jules Ngongo, spokesperson for the Democratic Republic of Congo Army in Ituri province, confirmed that armed men with machetes conducted an incursion into the church facility. Video footage from the scene showed burning structures and bodies on the church floor, with survivors identifying victims while others stood in shock.
The attackers also struck the nearby village of Machongani earlier the same evening, killing at least five additional people before taking several residents into the bush. Lossa Dhekana, a civil society leader in Ituri, reported that the fate and number of those taken remain unknown.
Security sources indicated the attackers originated from a stronghold approximately 7.5 miles from Komanda’s center and fled before security forces could respond to the alarm that sounded at 2 a.m. when smoke from burning houses became visible.
The Allied Democratic Forces formed in Uganda during the late 1990s from disparate groups expressing discontent with President Yoweri Museveni’s government. Following military pressure from Ugandan forces in 2002, the organization relocated its operations to neighboring Congo.
The group pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in 2019 and has since been responsible for killing thousands of civilians in the borderland region between Uganda and Congo. The ADF operates with the stated goal of establishing an Islamist government in the East African region.
This attack represents the latest in a series of deadly ADF assaults on civilian populations. Earlier in July 2025, the group killed 66 people in Ituri province in what a United Nations spokesperson characterized as a bloodbath.
Duranthabo condemned the violence, noting that it occurred in a town where security officials maintain a presence. He called for immediate military intervention, warning that enemies remained near the community. Some residents began fleeing toward Bunia following the attack.
The Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo has struggled to contain the ADF threat while simultaneously confronting renewed hostilities involving the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel movement. The complex security situation has created challenges for the overstretched Congolese military forces.
Survivors at the scene prepared to bury victims in a mass grave within the Catholic church compound. The attack suspended all activities in Komanda as the community grappled with the aftermath of the violence.
Eastern Congo has endured decades of conflict involving more than 100 armed groups, with roots tracing back to the 1994 Rwanda genocide. The mineral-rich Ituri province has been particularly affected by ongoing violence that has displaced approximately 7 million people across Congo’s population of 106 million.
The United Nations peacekeeping mission MONUSCO warned that the church killings would exacerbate an already dire humanitarian situation in the province. Meanwhile, security forces including the Congolese Armed Forces, Ugandan military and local police launched search operations for the attackers.
The Congolese government denounced the attack as horrific, while military officials described it as a large-scale massacre conducted in retaliation for recent security operations targeting ADF positions.
Sources:
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/21-killed-attack-east-congo-church-islamic-state-124111635
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/east-congo-church-attack-islamic-state-backed-allied-democratic-force/
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/what-to-know-about-the-attack-on-a-congolese-church-that-killed-nearly-40-worshippers
https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/27/africa/eastern-congo-church-attacked-rebels-intl
https://news.sky.com/story/democratic-republic-of-congo-at-least-34-people-killed-after-islamic-state-backed-rebels-attack-catholic-church-13402556
