Barnabas Aid reports that six Christians have been beheaded in separate attacks carried out by Islamists in Cabo Delgado Province in northern Mozambique. Three were captured and killed by militants from Islamic State Mozambique, known as IS-M, in Matambalale, in Muidumbe District, on Sunday, November 1. Three others suffered the same in separate attacks in Mueda District.

The killings are part of a pattern, according to the ministry. In the past few months, IS-M attacks against Christians in Cabo Delgado have become more frequent, with at least eight fatalities reported in September and into October. Barnabas Aid says counter-terrorism experts have assessed that IS-M has grown to an estimated 400-500 fighters following a recruitment drive in early 2026.

The ministry cites a senior analyst from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project, who says IS-M is engaged in a political project that rejects the secular state and advocates for rule based on its interpretation of Islamic law. Around 2,750 civilians have been killed by IS-M since 2017, Barnabas Aid reports, while many thousands have been displaced by the ongoing violence.

Barnabas Aid asks Christians to pray that the Lord will comfort those bereaved in these latest attacks. The ministry asks that He will bring an end to the power of Islamist terrorists, for the sake of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and for all the communities of Cabo Delgado affected by this ongoing violence.

These are our brothers and sisters. Their names are known to God. Romans 12:15 and Hebrews 13:3 tell us how to stand with them: in shared grief and in steady prayer.

Read Romans 12:15