Church Attack in Kaduna Sad Story of Deteriorating Security in Nigeria: Christian Leader

In a September 28 report, the leadership of CSW said, “The predominantly Christian ethnic minority tribes who inhabit the southern part of the state have experienced relentless attacks since 2011, with a significant uptick following the advent of the current administration in 2015."

CSW's leadership also expressed concern about the alarming levels of violence in the State "despite being the headquarters of 11 military installations.” 

On September 26, bandits attacked the villages of Madamai and Abun in the State covered by the Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna, and reportedly killed at least 49 people and abducted 27 others. 

At least 20 houses were torched in the September attacks described as the worst “massacres against the natives” of the Nigerian State. 

In the November 2 report, Pastor Hayab says the people of God who have been troubled by the attackers for too long live in fear, not knowing who the assailants will attack next. 

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“These evil people have troubled us for too long,” Pastor Hayab says, and adds, “No one knows who will be the next target.”

In August, Catholic Bishops of Nigeria’s Kaduna Ecclesiastical Province bemoaned the insecurity orchestrated by religious extremists in the country and called on Nigerians to stand together and reclaim “nobility of faith.”

“Today, our country, entrusted to us by God, has been consumed by forces of darkness and death. We all know that sadly, the perpetrators of these evils are constantly appealing to the religion of Islam to validate their criminality,” the Catholic Bishops said. 

“This madness has cast a dark spell on the nobility of faith,” the Catholic Church leaders said, and lamented, “more and more citizens are losing faith in God because of the way religion has been abused in our country.”

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.