INTERNACIONAL
Exclusive eyewitness testimony reveals horrific details of deadly church attack in African nation
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Warning: This article contains graphic details that may be disturbing to some readers.
FIRST ON FOX – Dramatic testimony has been revealed exclusively to Fox News Digital, giving new details from the scene of the horrific massacre Sunday by Jihadists allied to the Islamic State of at least 49 Christians worshiping in a church in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Nine of those who were decapitated were children. Several other children, the number isn’t clear, were abducted. The attackers were members of the Islamist Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a sanctioned rebel group with roots in Uganda.
With the assistance of Open Doors UK, Fox News Digital reached a local church partner of the organization in the DRC, who rushed to witness the scene of the attack, in the village of Komanda, just hours after it took place. Open Doors is a global Christian charity which supports and speaks up for Christians persecuted for their faith.
POPE LEO XIV CONDEMNS BRUTAL MACHETE ATTACK THAT KILLED 49 CHRISTIANS DURING PRAYER IN DR CONGO
A screenshot shows villagers inspecting the damage left by jihadi terrorists who killed 49 Christians in DR Congo on Sunday. (Open Doors)
From survivors in the village, including a shop owner who managed to be an eyewitness and remarkably escaped detection by the attackers even though his shop was burnt down, and the reported position of the bodies of those hacked to death, the church worker pieced together an account of how the attack happened.
Judith, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, told Fox News Digital it was clear something was wrong even before she reached the village. «On our way we could see people already leaving, carrying their bags, heading for more secure areas.
«In Komanda there were no activities, and people were standing in groups around the shops and the places that had been burnt. And people were sad. There was sadness everywhere.»
Fox News Digital has learned worshipers had come from surrounding villages to celebrate the church’s Silver Jubilee in prayer and to pray for «the security situation» – to pray for peace.
«Attackers came in» she said, «and they beheaded Christians in the church.» The jihadis «killed those they met in the church hall. Those who tried to flee, they caught them and killed them in the compound. And then some others who managed to run towards the road, those also were caught and killed. All of them were killed with machetes. Most of those Christians who were killed, were Catholics.»
WIDESPREAD KILLING, RAPE, DISEASE AND WAR MAKE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO HELL ON EARTH
Villagers walk toward the burial site of 49 Christians killed by jihadists in the Democratic Republic of Congo. (Open Doors)
Another shopkeeper whose business was also burned down told Judith «we don’t even understand why all this is happening.»
The U.N.’s MONUSCO (the Stabilization Mission in the DRC) shipped in earth-digging «Caterpillars» to dig a huge crater in the village, a mass grave into which simple boxes which formed coffins were placed for the dead. Some of those buried that day had come to Komanda for safety after already being attacked in other areas before.
At Monday’s funeral, Judith said, «People were crying, weeping, some crying for their children who had been kidnapped. One woman cried for the man she was shortly due to marry, now lying dead. Others were also crying that this is the person that was taking care of me. Now the person is no more.
«There was sadness upon sadness everywhere. Everything they had is lost, they have nothing now.»
Villagers pray together for the 49 Christians killed last Sunday in the Democratic Republic of Congo by ISIS-linked extremists. (Open Doors)
Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, on Monday condemned the attack on X, posting «This deadly escalation in their targeting of Christians makes the peace process, championed by @POTUS and @SecRubio even more urgent. We must focus all energies on eradicating these ISIS terrorists and forging a new regional economic path.»
«This is a crisis of biblical proportions», Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK and Ireland, told Fox News Digital, adding «This is a silent slaughter happening, which nobody is discussing. It’s like the slaughter of the innocents in the Bible, really. I mean, women and children are being targeted along with men. Nobody is reporting on it. Nobody even seems to be particularly concerned about it.»
POPE, STATE DEPARTMENT CONDEMN LATEST MASSACRE OF CHRISTIANS BY ISLAMIST MILITANTS IN NIGERIA
Villagers bury their dead following the murder of 49 Christians in the Democratic Republic of Congo by ISIS-linked jihadists. (Open Doors )
Blythe said that the Islamists are attempting to create a caliphate with its strict Islamic laws in a country which is 80-95% Christian.
«Christians are not even sleeping in their houses at night. They would rather sleep in the jungle at risk of wild animals than be sitting ducks in their houses when the extremists attack. In this part of Sub-Saharan Africa, we think that more than 16 million Christians have been displaced as a result of the violence. The church is on the run. Christians are snatching up their children and running for their lives, often at night.»
«This is not an isolated event,» Jo Newhouse, a Sub-Sahara specialist for Open Doors, told Fox News Digital. The organization reports that more than 80 local villagers, largely Christians, have been killed in other attacks in just this month of July alone. «We need the U.S. to pay attention about what is happening and use your influence for the church here. Do not be blind to what is happening here. Pay attention.»
Judith heard about President Donald Trump’s brokered peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda. However, it hasn’t so far made any difference to the situation where she is, in the eastern part of the country. «We have seen many peace accords which have not given any result,» she said. «The peace accord that is needed is the one with the ADF. For now, they continue attacks on the people.»
People gather around the charred remains of a burned vehicle following a deadly attack in Komanda, Ituri province of eastern DR Congo, where 49 worshipers were killed at a church service by jihadists. (Olivier Okande/UGC via AP)
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Villagers saw the Islamist attackers withdraw to a point a few miles away. A local source says no arrests have been made. Another attack can come at any time.
«If the Trump administration can put pressure on governments like Uganda and Rwanda to withdraw their forces here,» Judith said «Congo would be fine».
christianity religion,africa,terrorism,isis
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`The Israeli military conducted strikes against Hamas in Gaza after accusing the terrorist organization of repeatedly violating its ceasefire agreement on Sunday.
An Israeli military official confirmed the strikes to Fox News on Sunday, pointing to attacks by Hamas since Friday. The IDF later confirmed that it was taking actions in Gaza.
«Earlier today, terrorists fired an anti-tank missile and gunfire toward IDF troops operating to dismantle terrorist infrastructure in the Rafah area, in southern Gaza, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement,» the IDF said in a statement.
«In response, the IDF has begun striking in the area to eliminate the threat and dismantle tunnel shafts and military structures used for terrorist activity,» it continued.
HAMAS ACCEPTS TRUMP PEACE PLAN ENDING 2 YEARS OF WAR IN GAZA, RETURNING HOSTAGES
Military vehicles are gathered near the Israel-Gaza border, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in southern Israel on Oct. 12, 2025. (Ammar Awad/Reuters)
Israel has responded by striking areas in the north and south of the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office says he has instructed the minister of defense and other security heads to «act forcefully» in reaction to the attacks.
Hamas claims it has «no knowledge» of any attacks against Israeli forces, releasing a statement on Sunday saying they were still abiding by the terms of the agreement.
«We affirm our full commitment to implementing everything that has been agreed upon, foremost among which is the ceasefire in all areas of the Gaza Strip. We have no knowledge of any events or clashes taking place in the Rafah area,» the group wrote.
«We have no connection to any events occurring in those areas, nor can we communicate with any of our fighters there if any of them remain alive,» it added.
The reported attacks on Israeli troops comes after Hamas spent days fighting Palestinian rival groups after the ceasefire went into effect.
ISRAELI TROOPS ‘OPEN FIRE’ ON SUSPECTS WHO APPROACHED SOLDIERS IN NORTHERN GAZA
In this still from a verified social media video confirmed to Reuters by a Hamas source, seven men are forced to their knees and shot from behind by Hamas gunmen during public executions in Gaza on Oct. 14, 2025. (Reuters)
According to Reuters, Hamas executed at least 33 people in recent days in what officials described as a campaign to «show strength» after the ceasefire. Israeli sources say most of those killed belonged to families accused of collaborating with Israel or supporting rival militias.
The U.S. Department of State on Saturday warned on Saturday that Hamas may break the peace agreement with a «planned attack» on Palestinian civilians.
«This planned attack against Palestinian civilians would constitute a direct and grave violation of the ceasefire agreement and undermine the significant progress achieved through mediation efforts,» the department said in a statement on social media. «The guarantors demand Hamas uphold its obligations under the ceasefire terms.»
Members of the Hamas militant group searching for bodies of the hostages in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
«The United States and the other guarantors remain resolute in our commitment to ensuring the safety of civilians, maintaining calm on the ground and advancing peace and prosperity for the people of Gaza and the region as a whole,» the statement continued.
President Donald Trump warned Hamas on Friday that continued attacks on Palestinians would force the U.S. and Israel to intervene.
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«If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them,» he wrote on X.
Fox News’ Brie Stimson contributed to this report
israel,world,middle east
INTERNACIONAL
Israel bombardeó el sur de la Franja de Gaza tras un presunto ataque de Hamas y peligra el acuerdo de paz en Medio Oriente
La Fuerza Aérea de Israel bombardeó Rafah, en el sur de la Franja de Gaza, después de que, presuntamente, milicianos atacaran a las fuerzas militares apostadas en esa zona, y peligra el acuerdo de paz en Medio Oriente, lo que genera una situación de mucha fragilidad. Hasta el momento se desconoce si hay heridos o muertos, ni tampoco si este fuego cruzado podría poner en peligro el alto el fuego que entró en vigencia el 10 de octubre.
Israel tenía el control del 30% de la Franja de Gaza, y al retirarse empezaron a haber enfrentamientos entre distintos grupos terroristas, encabezados por Hamas, para controlar la zona. Sumado a que, según Israel, hubo ataques con morteros a sus posiciones.
Leé también: Las claves de la advertencia de Estados Unidos de un incumplimiento del alto el fuego en Gaza
El primer ministro israelí, Benjamín Netanyahu, ordenó “actuar enérgicamente contra objetivos terroristas” en Gaza, nueve días después de la entrada en vigor del alto el fuego. Un comunicado oficial confirmó: “Tras la violación del alto el fuego por parte de Hamas, el primer ministro Netanyahu celebró una consulta con el ministro de Defensa y los jefes del sistema de seguridad, y ordenó actuar enérgicamente contra objetivos terroristas en la Franja de Gaza”.
De acuerdo al texto hubo fuego cruzado entre milicianos y el Ejército israelí en Rafah, sur del enclave, después de que los primeros lanzaran contra las tropas “un misil antitanque y disparos” en la zona y “en respuesta, el Ejército empezó a bombardear el área para eliminar la amenaza, desmantelar bocas de túneles y estructuras militares utilizadas para actividad terrorista”.
A su vez el ministro israelí de Defensa, Israel Katz, advirtió en un comunicado: “Hamas pagará un alto precio por cada disparo y cada violación del alto el fuego. Si no entienden el mensaje se intensificará la intensidad de nuestra respuesta”.
En un video al que accedió la agencia EFE se ven a lo lejos columnas de humo en Rafah, donde según otra fuente local aterrizaron varios helicópteros para evacuar a posibles soldados heridos. Según fuentes del brazo armado de Hamas, el grupo había iniciado una operación en Rafah para eliminar a Yasser Abu Shabab, líder de la milicia rival conocida como las “Fuerzas Populares”. Pero soldados israelíes intercedieron para apoyar a Shabab, con ataques cruzados que provocaron la explosión de una excavadora israelí.
Estados Unidos había advertido sobre un incumplimiento del alto el fuego en Gaza, con acusaciones a Hamas
El gobierno de Estados Unidos, clave en el acuerdo de paz en Medio Oriente, advirtió el sábado que tenía “informaciones creíbles” que indicaban que Hamás planeaba “una violación inminente” del alto el fuego en ataque planeado contra civiles palestinos.
El descargo de Hamas sobre las acusaciones de Estados Unidos, con fuertes críticas al gobierno de Israel
Hamas rechazó las advertencias de Estados Unidos y culpó a Israel de haber armado y financiado a esas otras milicias que, dijo, concretaron “asesinatos, secuestros, robos de camiones de ayuda y robos contra civiles”.
Según la organización terrorista los agentes de Policía de Gaza “con un amplio apoyo civil y popular” persiguen a estas pandillas y las hacen responsables “de acuerdo a mecanismos legales claros, para proteger a los ciudadanos y preservar la propiedad pública y privada”.
Apenas un día después del alto el fuego milicianos de Hamas empezaron a reprimir a todos aquellos clanes y milicias que presuntamente colaboraron con Israel a lo largo de los dos años de ofensiva bélica, incluso con ejecuciones públicas de supuestos colaboradores.
El líder de Hamas, Izzat al Rishq, dijo en un comunicado publicado en el canal oficial de Telegram: “La ocupación sionista sigue infringiendo el acuerdo y buscando pretextos infundados para justificar sus crímenes. Los intentos de (el primer ministro de Israel) Benjamín Netanyahu de eludir y renegar de sus compromisos se producen bajo la presión de su coalición extremista y terrorista, en un intento de evadir sus responsabilidades ante los mediadores y garantes”.
Israel
INTERNACIONAL
Inside the minds of older, left-wing women driving new voting bloc of ‘Resistance Grandmas’ opposing Trump
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FIRST ON FOX: A Trump-aligned political consulting firm set out to investigate the ideological swing of affluent, college-educated white women who were once considered moderate, but have since moved farther to the left, uncovering what researchers describe as a new voting bloc of left-wing women: «Resistance Grandmas.»
«We are so knowledgeable about everything,» one woman said in a Northern Virginia focus group video reviewed by Fox News Digital, referring to herself and the other women who joined the session while slamming President Donald Trump’s «One Big Beautiful Bill.» «When [Trump voters] start being personally impacted, that’s when I’m hopeful that a little bit of something is gonna change.»
«It’s gonna be a catastrophe,» another woman chimed in, as another middle-aged woman added, «However, they will find a way to blame Democrats.»
Fox News Digital exclusively obtained a report conducted by the National Public Affairs (NPA), the polling arm of Trump campaign-aligned American Made Media Company, in September, as well as the full two-hour focus group session in northern Virginia that showcased the beliefs of 10 white, liberal, middle-aged, college-educated, upper–middle-class suburban women.
SQUAD 2.0: MEET AMERICA’S NEXT WAVE OF RADICAL DEMOCRATS SHAPING THE PARTY’S FUTURE
A 2024 billboard in Hastings, Minnesota, informing voters to «trust women and vote Democratic.» ((Photo by: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images))
The women who participated in the focus group were not informed it was conducted by a Trump-aligned polling firm, only told that they were brought in to discuss political topics for a focus group commissioned by another research firm. The researcher leading the focus group told the women at the start of the meeting that she had «no stake» in their comments «one way or the other,» and that the women «could say whatever comes to mind.»
«Pretty much anything is fair game,» the focus group leader told the women.
Fox News Digital is not publishing footage of the video or names of the women, but reviewed extensive footage of the session for the purposes of this article.
Justifying ‘ugly’ racist Virginia sign, using N-word analogy
The focus group was conducted to study how affluent middle-aged and older white women have increasingly shifted to the political left in recent years, and was sparked by a racist sign displayed outside a Northern Virginia school board meeting in August targeting Republican gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earle-Sears.
«In the year since President Trump’s historic victory, commentators have obsessed over what they call the radicalization of young white men. But a quieter, just as revealing transformation has swept another group once known for moderation and civility: older, affluent white women. This change came into sharp focus last August in Arlington, Virginia,» NPA’s report outlines.
The Virginia gubernatorial cycle is at a fever pitch, with the election just over two weeks away pitting ex-CIA agent and former Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger against Republican Earle-Sears. In August, a white woman was spotted holding a Jim Crow-era-reminiscent sign targeting Earle-Sears, who is Black, when the candidate attended a school board meeting.
«Hey Winsome, if trans can’t share your bathroom, then blacks can’t share my water fountain,» the sign read, igniting outrage from conservatives and others who called it racist.
CALIFORNIANS EXPERIENCING A ‘RED SHIFT’ OF LOCAL DEMOCRATS BECOMING REPUBLICANS AMID MIGRANT CRISIS, CRIME
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears was the subject of a sign condemned by Virginia leaders as offensive and inappropriate. (Winsome Earle-Sears Campaign)
The women in the focus group overwhelmingly characterized the sign as written in poor taste, describing its words as «ugly,» but also justified it by arguing Republicans have «already taken it too far with their trans bans.» Another woman used the N-word while comparing the sign to those of the segregated Jim Crow era of the late 19th to the mid-20th centuries in the American South.
«What’s the best analogy for a trans person not being able to use a particular bathroom in our recent modern history?» one participant asked the group.
Another woman chimed in: «You used to have hotels that said ‘No n—-rs, no Jews, no dogs at these hotels. Is that… I don’t know if that’s the same thing.»
«Like, I don’t think I would feel uncomfortable, and I definitely wouldn’t hold up that sign,» the first woman said in response. «But this person, I think, was just trying to find an appropriate analogy.»
Recent voting history of white women
The NPA report explained that polling data since the 2012 election, which pitted former Democrat President Barack Obama against Republican Mitt Romney, showed «voting patterns among white voters and women haven’t moved much in a decade.»
The shift to the left, the report argued, is not due to gender or race, but rather income and education.
«In 2012, college graduates leaned Republican, 51-47, while postgraduates favored Democrats 55-42. By 2024, that pattern had flipped and widened: Harris won college grads 53-45 and postgrads 59-38. Non-college voters went the other way. High-school grads and those with some college, once evenly split, gave Trump a 56-43 lead,» the report found.
«Income followed suit. Voters earning under $50,000, once a 60-38 Obama bloc, shifted to a 50-48 Trump edge. Those earning over $100,000 flipped from a 54-44 Romney majority to a 51-47 Harris win,» it continued.
The report took issue with the media asking and diving into explanations on «what ‘broke’ young white men» to move farther to the right and help re-elect Trump in 2024, but argued the question should instead be: «What radicalized rich white women, and whether they even realize it.»
Former Vice President Kamala Harris is seen as a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on July 31, 2025. (Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images)
‘Luxury’ of studying the news
The women in the focus group overwhelmingly presented themselves as arbiters of knowledge, reporting that they have the «luxury» of reading news articles from different outlets, while other voters are more concerned about costs of living and putting food on the table.
DEMOCRATS ARE MAKING A CRITICAL MISTAKE — AND VOTERS ARE LETTING THEM KNOW
One woman in the group recounted that her cousin living in a Heartland state was a lifelong Democrat who announced ahead of the 2024 election that he was leaning towards voting for Trump, which the woman said made her nearly fall «off my chair.»
The cousin, a male farmer, reported to her that the Biden administration had not helped U.S. farmers.
«He doesn’t know. He’s not paying attention to China’s not buying wheat or soybeans,» the female voter said. «He’s just concerned about his daily life and making enough money to support his family. And so I don’t think they’re paying attention.»
«I think a lot of times people are just very focused on … how it impacts them on that day and not reading The Washington Post or The New York Times or other things that we all have access to and, you know, have the luxury of doing,» she added.
Scene from the Jan. 6 2021 Capitol riot. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
Turning in a friend who breached U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6
Another woman reported to the group that she turned in her longtime friend after she found out she breached the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. The FBI launched a tip line shortly after Jan. 6, 2021, where people could report those who were «instigating violence in Washington, D.C.»
«She said, ‘We were just walking around,’» the woman in the focus group recounted of the conversation with her friend about Jan. 6. «And I know she slipped. I know she didn’t mean to tell me she was in the Capitol.»
«And I said, ‘It wasn’t a f—ing open house. You weren’t, you weren’t buying the Capitol,’» she continued, as other women in the group remarked, «Wow» and «Good for you.»
NEW YORK TIMES OP-ED DETAILS HOW DEMOCRATS LOST THE NON-WHITE VOTERS OBAMA GAINED
The woman said she has not spoken to her former friend since, and submitted a tip to authorities that she was in the Capitol the day of the protests.
«And then I had that whole inner turmoil of, ‘do I go on that website and say I think that she would’ …. I went back and forth on that for probably two weeks and asked some people. And finally, I just went on and said ‘she was there, and I don’t know what role she had, what it was,’» she said. «‘She was in that building by her own admission.’»
A new report published by a Trump-aligned pollster examined how educated, wealthy white women have move more to the left. (Getty Images)
A more cohesive future
«As the session ended, they voiced a small hope that the country might still find a way back to calm and common purpose. Whether that hope can survive a culture built on outrage is uncertain. But their conversation left one clear lesson. Beneath polls and party lines, the real contest for the nation’s future is over how Americans think, speak, and live with one another,» the report concluded.
The women in the group called on the Democrat Party to find cohesion and to disseminate their message to party leaders across the country in order to win upcoming elections.
«Democrats need to stop primarying for the lesser Republican. So what’s happening is … Democrats are voting between two Republican primary candidates, and they’re voting for the idiot, crazy, right-wing guy so that they don’t have to compete against this actual intelligent person. And that’s where we’re getting these nutcases,» one woman said.
Another woman said the DNC should combat everything Trump says, including when the president pinned blame on radical liberal violence for the assassination of Charlie Kirk in September.
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«I think it comes from the DNC. I think they need to organize. I think they need a cohesive message. I think they need to be vocal every time Trump says something, even about Charlie Kirk. Yes. No one should be killed for what they believe in. A hundred percent. But they are turning him into a martyr,» one woman said.
midterm elections,polls,campaigning,virginia,republicans,donald trump
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