Tension is simmering in Burkina Faso after armed men on motorbikes opened fire on worshippers, killing the church pastor and four others.
The attack which happened on Sunday immediately as the Protestant Church members were leaving the church is believed to have been masterminded by one of the local rebel groups in the country.
The deadly act happened in Silgadji near Djibo, the capital of Soum province, on the unarmed Christians.
“Unidentified armed individuals have attacked the Protestant church in Silgadji, killing four members of the congregation and the main pastor,” a security source told the AFP news agency.
This was the first attack on a church since since the beginning of sectarian violence in Burkina Faso.
“The attack happened around 1pm (13:00 GMT), just as the faithful were leaving the church at the end of the service,” a member of the church who did not want to be identified told AFP.
“The attackers were on motorbikes. They fired in the air before aiming at the members of the congregation,” the witness added.
Burkina Faso has borne the brunt of attacks linked to Ansarul Islam group, the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM) and others that stem from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/ISIS.)
January this year, a Canadian was abducted from a goldmine and killed after being accosted by armed gunmen.
February, a Spanish priest known as Father Cesar Fernandez was killed by gunmen believed to be from the troubled North of Burkina Faso.