Kaduna, 17 September, 2023 / 7:36 pm (ACI Africa).
Christian leaders in Nigeria’s Kaduna State under the auspices of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) have painted a grim picture of “severe” banditry attacks, which they say have resulted in the death of Pastors and the closure of churches in recent years.
In a Wednesday, September 13 report, the Chairman of CAN in Kaduna State, Pastor John Joseph Hayab, says, “In four years, the church has come under severe attacks by bandits and other criminal elements in Kaduna State where we lost 23 pastors and over 200 churches were shut down.”
“A pastor who was kidnapped on 8th August 2023, told the CAN leadership that there are over 215 Christians abducted by the bandits in Birnin Gwani forest,” Pastor Hayab adds.
According to the official of the Nigerian Christian entity that includes representatives of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), the Commissioner of Police of Kaduna State has been served with a report on the effects of insecurity on the church in the Nigerian State that has been described as the “epicenter of kidnapping and banditry activity”.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a UK-based human rights foundation, has indicated that that Nigeria’s Kaduna State continues to experience alarming levels of violence despite being the headquarters of 11 military installations.
