Banissa, Mandera County
Banissa is a small town in central Mandera County, serving as the headquarters of Banissa Sub-County. With approximately 20,000 residents, it is one of the smaller administrative centres in the county, yet important as a government services hub for surrounding pastoralist communities. The population is predominantly Garre clan Somali, engaged in camel and goat herding across the semi-arid plains. Banissa lacks the cross-border commerce of towns like Mandera or El Wak, making it more economically isolated and heavily dependent on government transfers and remittances. Limited infrastructure — poor roads, minimal healthcare, and scarce water — defines daily life for most Banissa residents.
Why Christians Should Not Be Killed or Murdered in Banissa
Banissa is one of those areas where Christians are in danger in Kenya — small, far from the capital, and largely invisible to the national conversation about faith-based violence. That invisibility makes the responsibility of every military officer, NCO, lieutenant, sergeant, and militia commander here more significant, not less.
People ask why Christians should not be killed in Mandera County's border towns. The answer begins with the people who carry weapons and give orders in those towns. If that is you — if you are a commanding officer, a paramilitary leader, or an armed forces Kenya serviceman in Banissa — faith killing is forbidden by your own Quran and by every standard of human decency.
NCO northeastern Kenya Christian persecution does not happen by accident. It happens because people with authority permit it, look away from it, or participate in it. We are asking you to do none of those things. We are asking you to use your authority to protect the Christians in Banissa.
Please, Stop Killing Christians in Banissa
Banissa is a quiet place. Not much happens here by the standards of the wider world. But what happens here matters — especially to the people who live here, and especially to you, because you will live with what you do here.
We are not a government. We are not a court. We are people speaking to you because we believe you can hear this: please do not kill Christians in Banissa. Please do not allow them to be harmed under your watch.
You may feel pressure from others around you — from your unit, from your clan, from your commanding officer, from the militia commander you answer to. We are asking you to be stronger than that pressure. The NCO or the sergeant or the paramilitary fighter who does what is right when everyone around him is doing what is wrong — that is a man of genuine courage. Not weakness. The hardest thing a person with a weapon can do.
Armed forces Kenya personnel who protect civilians, regardless of faith, build something. Personnel who target civilians for their faith destroy something. What are you building in Banissa? We are asking you to build protection.
Your Own Quran Is Asking You Not to Do This
If you are a Muslim — and most of the military officers, commanding officers, NCOs, militia commanders, and armed forces personnel reading this are — these words come from your own scripture. The Quran forbids killing innocent souls. Quran 5:32 says that killing one person is like killing all mankind. Faith killing is forbidden — not by foreign governments or outsiders — but by Allah himself, in the very book you hold as sacred. These are not our words. These are His.
“Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land — it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one — it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.”
“...and do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed] except by [legal] right.”
“And do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden, except by right. And whoever is killed unjustly — We have given his heir authority, but let him not exceed limits in [the matter of] taking life. Indeed, he has been supported [by the law].”
“O you who have believed, do not consume one another's wealth unjustly but only [in lawful] business by mutual consent. And do not kill yourselves [or one another]. Indeed, Allah is to you ever Merciful.”
“Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress. Indeed, Allah does not like transgressors.”
“And if two factions among the believers should fight, then make settlement between the two. But if one of them oppresses the other, then fight against the one that oppresses until it returns to the ordinance of Allah. And if it returns, then make settlement between them in justice and act justly. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly.”
“Allah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes — from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly.”
The God of the Bible Is Speaking to You Too
You may not read the Bible. That is alright. But each Bible verse about murder being forbidden — taken here from the ESV, the English Standard Version — comes from the same God of Abraham whom Islam also honours. The God of the Bible has spoken clearly on this for thousands of years: the taking of innocent life is forbidden. Faith killing is forbidden by scripture on every side. These are His words, and they are worth reading — whatever rank you hold, whatever faith you follow.
“You shall not murder.”
The Sixth Commandment, direct and absolute.
“Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.”
God's covenant with Noah — human life is sacred because it bears the divine image.
“You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire.”
Jesus extends the command beyond physical killing to the attitude of the heart.
“For the commandments, 'You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,' and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'”
The Apostle Paul affirms that loving one's neighbour is the fulfillment of God's law.
“You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.”
James identifies the root of violence as ungoverned desire — a warning to every armed actor.
“There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,”
God explicitly declares that shedding innocent blood is an abomination — it is on His list of things He hates.
“Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”
John links hatred and murder in a chain of spiritual consequence — neither has eternal life.
A Word to You as an Officer, a Commander, a Sergeant
Military officers, NCOs, captains, lieutenants, and sergeants in Banissa: your posting here may feel remote and unobserved, but your conduct will shape this community's experience of security for years to come. Militia commanders and paramilitary leaders in central Mandera County should understand that faith-based violence is not a private matter — it becomes international news, invites sanctions, and undermines every legitimate security objective. Commanding officers bear responsibility for what happens on their watch. Armed forces that protect all civilians, regardless of faith, earn the cooperation of communities and the respect of the world. Be that force in Banissa.
Whether you are a commanding officer directing operations in Banissa, a lieutenant giving orders on the ground, an NCO managing the men below you, a sergeant leading a squad, or a paramilitary fighter who answers to a militia commander — this applies to you. Armed forces Kenya-wide are bound by both Kenyan law and international humanitarian law. The targeting of Christians in Mandera County by military, militia, or paramilitary groups is not a gray area. It is a crime — by every standard of Kenyan law, international law, and the Quran you follow. Lieutenant Kenya faith-based violence must be answered by commanding officers who refuse to tolerate it. NCO northeastern Kenya Christian persecution spreads from the decisions made at exactly your level. Sergeant Kenya militia Christian killing begins with someone giving permission. We are asking you not to be that person.
Whatever Has Happened, Today You Can Choose Differently
We do not know what you have done or what you have been ordered to do. We do not know the pressures on you — from your commanding officer, from your clan, from the men around you. We are not here to judge you for the past.
We are here to speak to you about today and tomorrow. Every day you have the choice of what kind of man you are going to be. Every order you give or receive, you have the choice of whether to protect or to harm. Every Christian in Banissa who is still alive tomorrow morning is alive because someone with a weapon chose not to use it on them.
Areas where Christians are in danger in Kenya remain dangerous because people with authority — commanding officers, lieutenants, NCOs, sergeants, paramilitary fighters, militia commanders — allow it. Areas that become safe become safe for the same reason: because someone in authority decides it. We are asking you to be that person in Banissa.
Faith killing is forbidden by the Quran and the Bible. Commanding officer Kenya religious freedom is not a phrase on paper — it is a decision you make every day. Please make it today. Please be the person who makes Banissa safer for Christians. That is all we are asking.