A Ugandan Christian, Kiisa Masolo, has been killed by some Islamic extremists for preaching and leading Muslims to Christ, Morning Star News reports.
Masolo, 45, a member of Calvary Temple in Mbale, was killed on March 8 in his Nakiti village, Bunabuka parish, Sub-County in Sironko District.
The incident happened at about 7 p.m. on that day after he preached on the streets of Nakaloke and Busajjabwankuba.
According to his mother, Nandege, seven masked men dressed in Islamic attire broke into Masolo’s home and took him away.
She said, “After whisking him away, three men remained behind and told me that, ‘Allah is very displeased with your son, and we are out to punish him.’ Then the three men left.”
Nandege said a clan leader she called to narrate the incident advised that they should wait till the next morning before taking action. She further stated that when Masolo did not come back the following morning she reported the incident to the Local Council 3 chairperson and the search for her son commenced.
“After four hours of searching, the body of my son Masolo was found lying lifeless in the bush with a written Arabic note which we could not read.
“A person fluent in Arabic was called to read the script which stated, ‘We had warned you not to convert our Muslim brothers and sisters to Christianity, but you failed to heed to our warning. This has finally cost your life,” Masolo’s mother said.
Nandege also said Muslims had left repeated warnings and threats on her son’s mobile telephone asking him to stop converting Muslims to Christianity.
According to her, “I tried to advise my son to be very cautious with his life, but he used to tell me that his life was in the hands of God and that he was called to carry out the preaching of the gospel of Christ.
“Since then, I knew that the life of my son was in danger, and he might not live for long due to the many threatening messages of Allah who was out to kill him.”
Meanwhile, Masolo’s body, which had deep cuts in the head and neck, was deposited in the Mbale city mortuary for post-mortem and further investigation.
Ugandan, a country in East Africa, is a secular state because its constitution provides for religious freedom.
While Muslims (mostly Sunnis) make up between 12 and 14 percent of its 50 million population, Christians constitute about 80 per cent.
Of the about 80 per cent Christians, the Catholics make up 39 per cent, Anglicans 32 per cent while Pentecostals are 11 per cent.