UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the latest attack on a church in Burkina Faso in which six people, including a priest, were killed when gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on Sunday.
In a statement, Guterres urged all citizens of Burkina Faso to “stand firmly with one another across communities and not to succumb to efforts to sow discord and breed further violence”.
He noted the sanctity of all places of worship and expressed his hopes the perpetrators can be swiftly brought to justice.
The attack, which also saw the Catholic church in Dablo, in the country’s north, burned to the ground, was also condemned by the UN resident coordinator, Metsi Makhetha, who tweeted that hatred cannot be tolerated and called for the “fundamental right of religious freedom must be respected everywhere”.
The priest has reportedly been identified as Fr Simeon Yampa. The church is the third in Burkina Faso to be attacked in the past five weeks.