On February 23rd, an audio recording was released by al-Shabaab demanding that all non-local Christians leave three provinces in northeastern Kenya. In the 25-minute clip, a spokesman for the Somalia-based Islamic terrorists urged any ethnic Somalis in the area to evict non-Muslims. The message claimed that many Muslims in the area were unemployed, so they should be given the jobs held by the non-Muslims.
The three provinces bordering Somalia consist of primarily ethnic Somalis, many of whom migrated to Kenya because of the violent civil war in their homeland. Cosmas Mwinzi, a pastor in the affected area, said that this is not news to him since many of the people have made it clear that they want the Christians to leave. He goes on to say that education levels and the standard of living in the area are poor and that non-locals have provided needed support by helping the society.
Most of the non-local teachers have already fled the area after repeated raids by the militants, such as the January 13th attack which took place in the town of Kamuthe. (A report on this incident is available here.) The crisis has led to numerous schools in the area being forced to close for lack of teachers.
Please pray for the protection of any non-local workers remaining in northeastern Kenya, especially the Christians who have been uniquely targeted by al-Shabaab. Pray that Kenya's authorities will be able to take control of the situation so that peace will be established in this area. Ask our Master Creator of all humanity to enable people of various ethnic backgrounds and faiths to learn of His perfect love so it can be expressed with purity and goodness of heart among the brothers and sisters of our global human family.
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