Jihadi militants attack primary school, murder three Christian teachers

Jihadi militants have killed three Christian teachers in Kenya during an attack on a primary school, according to Kenya’s National Police Service.

In a post on Twitter, authorities confirmed the three teachers were killed when suspected Al-Shabaab militants attacked a primary school, a police post, and a telecommunications mast in the region of Kamuthe on Monday at about 2 a.m.

“This morning around 02.00 hrs, suspected armed AS Militia attacked Kamuthe Primary school, Kamuthe Police Post, a telecommunications mast and murdered 3 teachers,” police said.

“The telecommunications mast is particularly damaged but operational. Security agencies are pursuing the attackers.”

The attackers, who left a fourth teacher wounded, also reportedly abducted a Muslim teacher.

According to the Star Tribune, Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack and vowed retribution on Kenya for sending troops to Somalia since 2011 to fight the militants. The group has carried out numerous attacks on Kenya, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of people.

Schools were the target of several of those attacks. The deaths of two teachers in 2018 resulted in the closure of almost 250 schools in Wajir County, while hundreds of teachers, nurses and school employees have reportedly fled from the region.

Open Doors states, “even though Kenya is a majority-Christian country, many Christian communities are affected by persecution. Believers from a Muslim background in the northeast and coastal regions live under constant threat of attack — even from their closest relatives.”