Prayer Alert: 30+ Christians Beheaded in Mozambique as Radical Islamic Terrorism Runs Rampant in Parts of Africa

Talia Wise : Oct 21, 2025
CBN News

"Please pray again for our brothers and sisters in Cabo Delgado, where we live and where Rolland has been ministering these last weeks. The violence has surged and fallen in cycles for 7+ years. We are still contending earnestly for a lasting peace. Sometimes it can be hard to know how much to post about it, because we do not want to overwhelm people with hardships, and there is so much good news to share. But our neighbors truly do need your prayers. I haven't learned all the details of this most recent attack yet but it's likely that some or perhaps many of the victims were in Iris' network of churches. Families we know will be mourning. We mourn with them now, and I can hardly wait until I am strong enough to be with them again. May God have mercy on each wounded heart." -Heidi Baker, Co-founder of Iris Global, via Facebook

[CBN News] More than 30 Christians have been beheaded [earlier this month] at the hands of Islamic State terrorists in Mozambique, according to a report. (Screengrab image: via CBN News)

The Islamic State Mozambique Province, or ISMP, announced that they destroyed at least seven churches, committed acts of arson against Christians and village civilians, and shot and beheaded more than two dozen people in the Cabo Delgado and Nampula provinces in the northern area of Mozambique.

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) screen-captured, translated, and shared the terrorists' report on their website, which included 20 photos of the brutal attacks on Christians.

According to the organization, the Islamic State of Mozambique is reigning through terror in the region.

The group also claimed responsibility for the beheading of two Believers on September 25. The ISMP later took responsibility for a September 26 attack, which left a Christian local shot and killed. Four Christians were then beheaded in the town of Macomia days later. The group also posted images of homes and churches burned to the ground in Nacocha, Nacussa, Minhanha, and Nakioto villages. (Screengrab image: via CBN News)

To counter the attacks in local villages, Mozambique renewed an alliance with Rwanda in late August. In the Status of Force Agreement, Rwanda's Defense Force agreed to send troops into Cabo Delgado.

As CBN News has reported, violent attacks began in Cabo Delgado Province in 2017. Since then, more than 6,000 people have been killed and thousands more have been displaced.

Open Doors' World Watch List 2025 ranks the nation as the 37th most difficult country to be a Christian. The annual reports list the top 50 countries where Christians face the most extreme persecution.

The province of Cabo Delgado is the only area in the country with a majority Muslim population. The nation as a whole is predominantly Christian, with evangelical and Pentecostal Christians making up a significant portion, a State Department report outlined.

CBN's Billy Hallowell and Raj Nair point out that the plight of Mozambican Christians is largely ignored in the Western world.

"It is hard to process the fact that in 2025 you have people around the world who are terrorists who are beheading Christians. It is the most horrific thing imaginable," Hallowell commented.

"Can you imagine if the headline [read] the IDF beheads 30 Palestinians," Nair responded. "We would be talking about the biggest news story since 9/11."

He noted that the major media outlets have failed to report on the "genocide happening against Christians" in multiple countries in Africa.

"The world does not care," he added.

READ Bill Maher Condemns Media Silence on Christian Genocide in Nigeria: 'Systematic Killing'

Hallowell added there is a spiritual battle taking place.

"The Bible is real. And so the enemy's goal is to kill it, to snuff it out, to try to do that. Now, he will not be successful with that. And it will never happen that way. We know how the story ends. Jesus wins. But in the midst of that, this persecution, these deaths, they are going to happen. And we need to be praying for those people."

Nair prayed for the nation, asking the Holy Spirit to flood places experiencing extreme darkness and persecution.

"We pray for the name of Yeshua to comfort our fellow Believers in Nigeria and in Mozambique and all over Africa," Nair said. "We pray for Your will to be done in the name of Jesus." Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here