French Christians have been left shaken by the murder of a 45-year-old Chaldean Catholic from Iraq who was stabbed to death outside his Lyon apartment while livestreaming about his faith.
Confined to a wheelchair, Ashur Sarnaya had fled persecution by the so-called Islamic State and had lived in France for over a decade.
He was active on TikTok under the name “Ashur Love,” where he posted prayers and Christian songs in Arabic.
His final moments were recorded and widely shared online.
SOS Chrétiens d’Orient said in a statement: “A devout believer, he was a member of the Assyrian-Chaldean community and a faithful member of the Chaldean parish of St Ephrem in Lyon.”
Commentator Charlotte d’Ornellas remarked: “Fleeing persecution, only to be murdered in France!” She added that many of his followers viewed him as “a martyr for his faith.”
Archbishop Olivier de Germay of Lyon expressed his solidarity with the local Iraqi Christian community, urging: “Violence is a dead end. Let us fight it with prayer and dialogue.”
Christian groups in France have condemned the attack, linking it to anti-Christian hostility on social media.
“He lost his life because he displayed his Christian faith on social media," France’s evangelical Christians said in a 15th September statement.
Demonstrations against “Christianophobia” are planned later this month in Paris.
The investigation into the killing is ongoing.