Daud Hassam Ali and his wife. Daud was born Muslim but converted to Chrisitanity later in life. (VOMC photo)
It happened during a midnight raid by Islamic insurgents on a the Hakeb Private English School located in the south-central town of Beledweyne. Al-Shabab is the militant Islamic group responsible for the killings. However, they claim that the Christian teachers were simply caught in the crossfire of indiscriminate shots.
Two of the teachers are British citizens with Somali origin: Mr. Daud Hassan Ali and Ms. Rehana Ahmed. The other two believers were unidentified Kenyans.
Despite the group's claim, townspeople say that the believers were targeted for their evangelistic work. Daud Hassan Ali's wife claims that her husband was singled out because he was a born-Muslim man who converted to Christianity later in life.
Somalia is nearly all Sunni Muslim--only .05 percent of people are Christian. Persecution is strong in many areas, but the number of Christians still seems to be rising.
