Hitting out : Justin Welby said the students killed in Kenya by Islamic militants were 'martyrs ' THE Archbishop of Canterbury will today hail the students killed by Islamist militants in Kenya last week as ‘ martyrs ’ , as Church leaders and politicians use Easter to condemn persecution of Christians . Justin Welby will say in his Easter sermon that 148 Christian students slaughtered by Somali gunmen on Thursday were ‘ witnesses ’ to their faith and suffered ‘ cruel deaths ’ . His comments follow Pope Francis ’ s denunciation of the ‘ senseless ’ killings at Garissa University College , in which Christians were singled out and shot . The Pope said in a Good Friday service in Rome that too many were guilty of a ‘ complicit silence ’ in the face of such attacks . In an overtly religious Easter message , David Cameron says it was ‘ truly shocking ’ that Christians were still tortured or killed because of their faith in much of the world . Their outspoken comments came as three people were arrested on suspicion of involvement in the attack in the north-east of Kenya , bringing the total number of suspects being held to five . The Kenyan Government said the three , who were trying to cross into Somalia , are associates of Mohamed Mohamud , a former teacher at a Kenyan Madrassa Islamic school , who is believed to have co-ordinated the attack . Meanwhile , a survivor of the killings was found yesterday two days after the massacre . Cynthia Charotich , 19 , hid in cupboard and covered herself with clothes , refusing to emerge when classmates came out of hiding at the demand of the Al-Shabaab gunmen . Archbishop Welby will also refer in his sermon in Canterbury Cathedral to other Christians killed in massacres , including in Libya , saying : ‘ There have been so many martyrs in the last year. ’ 148 Christian studentsat Garissa University College , Kenya , were slaughtered by Somali gunmen on Thursday . Pictured : Distraught woman assisted by Red Cross staff .
Justin Welby comments follow Pope Francis 's denunciation of the killings . David Cameron used his Easter message to brand killings 'truly shocking ' 148 Christian students at Garissa University College were slaughtered . five people have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in the attack .