A Catholic nun serving in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was among the seven people killed October 19 evening when gunmen aligned with the Islamic State attacked a Catholic mission hospital in a raid.
Sister Marie-Sylvie Kavuke Vakatsuraki and six patients at the hospital were killed Oct. 19 when gunmen with the Allied Democratic Forces raided Maboya village, in the country’s northeast province of North Kivu, International Christian Concern reports.
Several people who work or live near the hospital, including two nuns, were missing in the wake of the attack and are feared to be abducted by the raiders, according to International Christian Concern.
The Allied Democratic Forces are rebels from neighboring Uganda. They are aligned with the Islamic State. The group of gunmen which attacked Maboya also stole drugs and medical equipment from the hospital, and set it on fire.
Bishop Melchisédec Sikuli Paluku of Butembo-Beni lamented the killings and strongly condemned the attack. Sister Marie-Sylvie was a medical doctor and a member of the Congregation of the Little Sisters of the Presentation of Our Lady at the Temple, the bishop said.
“May the soul of our dear Sister Doctor Marie-Sylvie Kavuke Vakatsuraki, who passed away in the service of her brothers and sisters, rest in peace through the mercy of God!” Paluku said in an Oct. 20 statement obtained by ACI Africa, CNA’s partner agency.
“Words cannot express the horror that has more than crossed the threshold!” he added.