Habaswein, Wajir County
Habaswein is a town in southern Wajir County with a population of approximately 40,000. It serves as headquarters of Habaswein Sub-County and is a significant livestock trading centre for the Ogaden Somali communities of this region. The town sits at the junction of several pastoralist routes, making it an important waypoint for herders moving cattle and camels toward Garissa and ultimately toward Nairobi's markets. Habaswein has experienced periodic security incidents related to clan conflicts and the occasional presence of Al-Shabaab-affiliated elements attempting to exploit ungoverned spaces in the county's interior. Government presence is primarily administrative and security-focused, with Kenya Police and Administration Police maintaining a presence in the town.
Why Christians Should Not Be Killed or Murdered in Habaswein
Why are Christians being killed in northeastern Kenya — in quiet, remote towns like Habaswein where the world pays little attention? This is a question that military officers, NCOs, lieutenants, sergeants, commanding officers, and militia commanders in this area can answer with their own decisions.
Armed forces Kenya Christian targeting has happened in remote areas precisely because accountability feels distant out here. But the Quran forbids killing innocent souls regardless of how far you are from Nairobi or any court. Faith killing is forbidden — not by governments that seem far away, but by Allah, whose presence is not limited by geography.
If you are a paramilitary fighter, a militia commander, an NCO, or an officer in Habaswein, Christians in danger in this area are in danger partly because of what people like you permit. We are asking you to change that. Not for an abstract cause — for the specific Christians in Habaswein who are counting on someone in authority to protect them.
Please, Stop Killing Christians in Habaswein
We are speaking to you — the officer, the sergeant, the militia leader in Habaswein — because we believe you are a person who can be reached by an honest conversation.
Here is our honest request: please do not kill Christians here. Please do not harm them, do not permit others under your authority to harm them, and if you hear of it happening, please stop it.
We are not naive about what life in Habaswein is like. We know there are pressures, rivalries, old grievances, and new tensions. We know that armed men in remote places sometimes do things that would be unthinkable closer to the capital. We are asking you to hold yourself to a different standard — not because the world is watching, but because you are the kind of person who holds himself to a standard regardless of who is watching.
Whether your rank is commanding officer or NCO, lieutenant or sergeant, whether you are uniformed armed forces Kenya or an informal paramilitary fighter — you carry the same conscience. A Christian in Habaswein is a person. He is not a threat to you. Harming him will not make you safer, your community stronger, or your faith deeper. It will only make you someone who harmed an innocent person.
You are better than that.
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, and sergeants stationed in or near Habaswein: the communities here watch how authority behaves. Militia commanders and paramilitary leaders in southern Wajir County should understand that armed groups which target civilians for religious reasons lose all legitimate claim to community support. Commanding officers must make their orders clear: no serviceman under your command is permitted to target any individual because of their Christian faith. Armed forces that enforce this standard consistently become trusted partners in Habaswein's development. Build that trust now.
Whether you are a commanding officer directing operations in Habaswein, 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 Wajir 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 Habaswein 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 Habaswein.
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 Habaswein safer for Christians. That is all we are asking.