AFRICA/DR CONGO - Catholic priest attacked during robbery at a training school

Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – A priest in Ituri, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has once again been attacked. On the night of September 15-16, several gang members armed with hammers, knives, crowbars, and other tools entered a school near the bishop's house in the Mudzipela neighborhood of the Shari commune in Bunia, the capital of the Congolese province.
According to Father Jean-Deogratias Budjona, the spiritual director of the training center, the assailants attacked the security guard to force him to reveal where the money was kept, even threatening him with death if he didn't talk. "The guard was tortured and ordered to show where the money was," Father Budjona reported. "He then started calling us, and that's when one of us, Father Justin Logo, opened the door. When he realized they were thieves, he tried to close the door again, but in vain." "That's how they managed to gain access to the living room," the priest continues. "When the priest tried to escape to his room, the bandits chased him and injured his arm." The priests finally managed to raise the alarm, prompting a military patrol to intervene. This is the third robbery at the preparatory school since July . Other churches and monasteries have also been attacked this year in Ituri, Lopa, Komanda, and Nyakasanza. The most serious incidents were the attack by CODECO militias on the Saint Jean de Capistran parish in Lopa on July 21 (see Fides, 23/7/2025) and the bloody attack by ADF Islamists on the night of July 26-27 against the Blessed Anuarite parish in Komanda, in which nearly 50 people were killed and at least 40 young people were kidnapped (see Fides, 28/7/2025). On the night of August 19-20, gang members attacked the church of the Saint Kizito training center in Bunia (see Fides, 22/8/2025). Various armed groups are active in Ituri. Widespread gang violence contributes to the growing insecurity in the province, even though it, along with North Kivu, has been under siege since May 2021 (see Fides, 7/5/2021). While the state of siege grants the military extensive powers, these have not been sufficient to ensure security over the past four years. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 18/9/2025)

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