Fast To Death In Order To Meet Jesus: Cult Deaths Top 400 As Police Exhume 12 More Bodies, With Pastor In Custody

The number of people who died in connection with Kenya’s doomsday cult has crossed the 400 mark as detectives exhumed 12 more bodies on Monday believed to be followers of a pastor who ordered them to fast to death in order to meet Jesus.

Along with 36 other suspects, Pastor Paul Mackenzie, who is associated with the cult that is situated in a forested area of Malindi, coastal Kenya, is being held by police. No one has yet been charged.

As of Monday, Coast Regional Commissioner Rhoda Onyancha said that 403 persons had perished and 95 had been saved.

On Thursday, July 13, 2023, Abdikadir Omar enters a shelter with his wife and kids after travelling from Somalia for 12 days in search of food and protection. They came to Dadaab Refugee Camp in northern Kenya.

Thousands of people have just fled Somalia in order to escape drought and terrorism, but when they arrive at the Dadaab camp in neighbouring Kenya, they find little to eat, providing a striking illustration of the global food security dilemma.

Before Russia halted the grain agreement, food shortages in a refugee camp in Kenya made children hungry.

Last month, some defendants and persons who had been rescued began a hunger strike in jail and at the rescue facility, which led the prosecutor to charge them with attempted suicide in court. The majority of them consented to resume eating, but one suspect passed away while being held.

The Kenya Red Cross has received 613 reports of missing people up to this point from residents of Malindi town. Investigators continue to come across mass graves.

253 of the 403 bodies, according to Onyancha, had DNA matching done. Most of the remains were deteriorated, according to pathologists’ earlier reports.

2019 saw Mackenzie relocate to the jungle after his church was shut down due to his sermons, which included urging kids not to attend school.

He was previously detained in connection with the disappearance of children and freed on bond.

President William Ruto established a judicial commission of investigation to determine what transpired and who was at fault. After opposition leader Raila Odinga petitioned the court, the committee was quashed.

The president promised to take action against “those using religion to advance their heinous acts” and described what happened in Malindi as “akin to terrorism.”