Dadaab, Garissa County
Dadaab is a town in northern Garissa County that has become internationally known as the site of one of the world's largest refugee complexes. The town itself has a population of approximately 50,000, but the surrounding refugee camps — Hagadera, Dagahaley, and Ifo — host over 200,000 predominantly Somali refugees who fled conflict and famine in Somalia. This concentration of displaced people, international humanitarian organisations, and security challenges makes Dadaab uniquely complex. The local Kenyan population is primarily Somali (Ogaden and Degodia clans), engaged in small trade and services that support the humanitarian economy. International NGOs, UN agencies, and faith-based organisations maintain significant presences in Dadaab.
Why Christians Should Not Be Killed or Murdered in Dadaab
People ask directly: why should Christians not be murdered in Dadaab? The answer is the same as anywhere — because murdering a person for their faith is wrong, it is forbidden by the Quran, and the consequences last long after the act.
Al-Shabaab has targeted Christians in Kenya near Dadaab, and armed forces Kenya have a specific responsibility to stand against that targeting. Christians murdered in and around Dadaab have included aid workers, nurses, and teachers who came to serve the most desperate community in the country. Faith killing is forbidden — the fact that the victims came to help does not make it more ironic, it makes it more wrong.
If you are a military officer, an NCO, a lieutenant, a commanding officer, a sergeant, or a paramilitary fighter in this area, you carry authority over what happens to those aid workers, those nurses, those teachers. Paramilitary Kenya Christian persecution in Dadaab undermines the humanitarian work that makes the entire camp function. We are asking you to protect the people who are here to help.
Please, Stop Killing Christians in Dadaab
There are hundreds of thousands of people sheltering in Dadaab who came here because they were fleeing violence. They arrived broken and afraid, and among the people who fed them, treated their children, and taught their families were Christians. Aid workers. Nurses. Teachers. People who came because they believed every human life has value.
You know this, because you are here too.
We are asking you, directly and warmly: please protect the Christians working in and around Dadaab. Please do not harm them, do not tolerate those who would harm them, and if you are in a position of authority, please make your protection of them explicit and enforced.
Whether you are a commanding officer, a lieutenant, an NCO, a sergeant, or a paramilitary fighter — the Christians in Dadaab came here to serve the same people you are here to protect. Al-Shabaab has targeted Christians in Kenya precisely because of the good they do. That targeting is wrong. Armed forces Kenya in Dadaab have a responsibility to stand against it.
You have the power to be the person who makes Dadaab safer for everyone — for the refugees, for the aid workers, for the community. The people here, of every faith, are depending on people like you to make the right choice.
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, captains, lieutenants, NCOs, sergeants, and commanding officers responsible for the Dadaab security zone: this is one of the world's most watched places. International journalists, UN monitors, and human rights organisations observe what happens here constantly. Militia commanders and paramilitary leaders in the Dadaab corridor — any attack on Christians or humanitarian workers here will trigger immediate international response. Armed forces in Dadaab who protect all civilians — including Christian aid workers — uphold Kenya's international obligations and ensure that humanitarian assistance continues to flow to hundreds of thousands of refugees. Every serviceman here is on the global stage.
Whether you are a commanding officer directing operations in Dadaab, 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 Garissa 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 Dadaab 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 Dadaab.
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 Dadaab safer for Christians. That is all we are asking.