Christian nuns in Mozambique have recounted a terrifying ordeal of being held at gunpoint and threatened with decapitation during an armed robbery.
The Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament told the charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) that their convent was stormed by men carrying machetes and iron bars on the 8th June.
“Eight men came into the house, while the others stayed outside, controlling the gates and subduing the guards,” said Sister Ofélia Robledo Alvarado, who had felt too afraid to speak out until now.
“We were terrified when we saw them enter our rooms, demanding money and taking everything they could get their hands on. They stole our computers, cell phones and what little money we had.”
They recounted the men threatening them with decapitation whilst they ransacked the convent.
The Sisters said the attack had left them shaken, and that some of the women were “quiet” in the following days.
Whilst the intruders’ motivation remains unclear, Christians in Mozambique have faced an increasingly difficult climate.
The attack on the convent came a week after a group of missionaries in nearby Mieze were robbed by a group wielding machetes, where no one was harmed.
The country has faced a rise in jihadist extremism since 2017, when an insurgency displaced around 500 people.
Sister Aparecida Ramos Queiroz, who coordinates ACN projects in the Pemba Diocese, said that security measures are urgently needed to keep religious congregations safe.
Aid to the Church in Need works to improve the security of local convents and other Church buildings, as well as provide emergency aid for those displaced by the violence in Mozambique.