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Boko Haram

Seminarians carry the coffin of their colleague Michael Nnadi during his burial on 11 February 2020/ Aid to the Church in Need

‘This thing’s going to blow up on us’: The Religious Extremism Fueling Violence in Nigeria

May 15, 2021

Escalating bloodshed in Nigeria is fueled in part by religious extremism – and the United States must recognize this in order to achieve peace, says the former U.S. religious freedom ambassador.

Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Nigeria’s Sokoto Diocese during the  April 13 Mass. Crédit : Catholic Broadcast Commission of Nigeria

“The suffering Boko Haram has inflicted will scar our society for life”: Nigerian Bishop

Apr 15, 2021

The negative effects of the actions by Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria will always be felt by the people of God in the West African nation, a Catholic Bishop has said.

Aid to the Church in Need (ACN)

Unite, Act to Free Leah Sharibu: Nigerian Christian Leader to International Community

Feb 24, 2021

On the third anniversary of the abduction of the Nigerian Christian schoolgirl, Leah Sharibu, a Christian leader in the West African nation has appealed for “intentional concerted efforts” across borders to demand for her release. 

Leah Sharibu who was kidnapped  3years ago / Courtesy Photo

Do All in Your Power to Secure Release of Leah Sharibu: Nigerian Archbishop to President

Feb 22, 2021

Three years after Leah Sharibu was abducted from her school in Dapchi in Yobe State within Nigeria’s Catholic Diocese of Maiduguri, the Archbishop of Lagos has called on the country’s Head of State to “do all in his power … to secure her release.”   

Bishops of Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province after their July 13 to14 meeting held at Nigeria’s M&M centre, Ilorin, Kwara State. / Catholic Diocese of Oyo, Nigeria.

Bishops in Nigeria Support “alternative” Security Outfits, Say Authorities Have Failed

Jan 31, 2021

Catholic Bishops of Nigeria’s Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province have decried the lack effectiveness of security forces in combating violence in the West African country and expressed their support for “alternative and lawful initiatives” that have emerged to restore peace in the country.

Bishop Oliver Dashe Doeme of Nigeria’s Maiduguri Diocese.

Despite Boko Haram Insurgency, Christian Faith on the Rise in Nigeria: Catholic Bishop

Jan 8, 2021

Increased Boko Haram attacks meted against Christians in Nigeria are not undermining the practice of Christian faith in the West African country, a Catholic Bishop in one of the worst hit regions of the country has said.

Fr. Valentine Oluchukwu Ezeagu pictured shortly after his released Wednesday, December 16.

Nigerian Religious Cleric Abducted Tuesday “unconditionally released”

Dec 17, 2020

The Nigerian Religious Cleric abducted earlier this week on his way to his dad’s funeral has been “unconditionally released,” the leadership of his Religious Congregation has announced. 

Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of  Nigeria's Abuja Archdiocese.

Nigerian Prelate Urges Government to Support Catholic Church in Fight against Boko Haram

Nov 27, 2020

The intervention of the Catholic Church has been key in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency in Northern Nigeria, a Prelate in the West African nation has said, calling on the government of the country to strengthen the activities of the Church in the country’s affected region.

Bishop Ernest Anaezichukwu Obodo with court officials after Holy Mass to Launch Legal Year at Holy Ghost Cathedral, Ogui Enugu. / Diocese of Enugu/Facebook Page

“You are the hope of the common man,” Nigerian Prelate Tells Lawyers at Legal Year Launch

Oct 3, 2020

The need for the ordinary members of the society to get justice from the courts has been emphasized by a Prelate in the West African nation of Nigeria who has called on all court officials to be the hope of the "common man" by ensuring they receive justice.

Malteser International Emergency Medical Team during a simulation exercise in 2019. / ©Malteser International

Catholic Aid Agency Reaches Out to Health Workers in Cameroon with Trainers

Jun 25, 2020

The leadership of the Rome-based Catholic Lay Religious Sovereign Order of Malta, Malteser International (MI), is sending an Emergency Medical Team (EMT) to Cameroon in response to the Central African nation’s appeal for international assistance in controlling the “the rapid spread of COVID-19.”

Bishop Matthew Kukah of Sokoto Diocese in Nigeria.

Help Us Fight Militant Groups, Nigerian Prelate Appeals to International Community

Jun 17, 2020

A Catholic Bishop in Nigeria says that the government in the West African nation is overwhelmed in the fight against insurgency that has wreaked havoc in the country, and is now calling on the international community to step in and help restore law and order.

Flag of Nigeria on soldiers arm. Credit: Bumble Dee/Shutterstock

Attack on Nigerian Village Leaves 80 Dead

Jun 13, 2020

The militant group Boko Haram is believed to be behind a recent attack on a Nigerian village that left at least 81 people dead on Tuesday, June 9. 

Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto in Nigeria.

Prelate Blames Woes of Nigerian Children Seeking Islamic Education on an “elite” Group

Jun 11, 2020

A section of children living with their teachers to pursue Muslim knowledge in Northern Nigeria, also referred to as Almajirai, are receiving “violent” treatment from the wider society that treats them as prospective Boko Haram recruits, a situation that a Catholic Prelate in the West African country blames on the Muslim elite group in the region.

Seminarians carry the coffin of their murdered colleague, Michael Nnadi during his burial on February 11.

At least 70 Clergymen Killed, Abducted in Nigeria since 2015: Report

Mar 13, 2020

At least 20 clergymen among them Catholic priests and seminarians have been killed in the West African nation of Nigeria since June 2015, while another 50 have been abducted, according to a report by a on-governmental organization (NGO) based in the West African country.

Fr. David Echioda of Nigeria's Otukpo diocese who had been kidnapped on March 1, 2020. He was freed on March 3, 2020 / Diocese of Otukpo, Nigeria

Nigerian Priest Abducted Sunday after Mass Has Been Freed

Mar 3, 2020

Nigerian priest Fr. David Echioda who was abducted by gunmen in Nigeria’s Benue State Sunday, March 1 has been freed, sources in Nigerian told ACI Africa Tuesday, March 3.

Catholic Bishops in Nigeria lead peaceful protests against insecurity on March 1 in Abuja

The West “should give Boko Haram attention they give to other terrorist groups”: Prelate

Mar 2, 2020

The need for the West to “give attention” to the atrocities being committed by the jihadist terrorist organization, Boko Haram the same way it tells stories of other “terrorist groups” was a major highlight at the peaceful protest march staged by Catholic Bishops in Nigeria Sunday, March 1, against abductions and killings that seem to target Christians.

Seminarians carry the coffin of their colleague Michael Nnadi during his burial on February 11

Buhari’s Presidency Has Pushed Nigeria “to the brink”: Bishop at Seminarian’s Burial

Feb 13, 2020

At the burial ceremony of 18-year-old Michael Nnadi, the Nigerian seminarian abducted from the Good Shepherd Major Seminary and murdered last month, the Local Ordinary of his native diocese, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto has decried insecurity situation in the West African country, faulted the country’s President, and expressed the hope that Michael’s death becomes a turning point for Christian persecution in Africa’s most populous nation.

Retired Archbishop  Anthony Olubunmi Cardinal Okogie  of Lagos who has faulted claims by government officials that Boko Haram has been defeated.

Buhari to “be answerable to God for every life Boko Haram has destroyed”: Nigerian Prelate

Feb 5, 2020

Following increased cases of abductions and murder targeting Christians in the West African nation of Nigeria, the most recent case being the killing of the 18-year-old seminarian Michael Nnadi, the retired Archbishop of Lagos, Anthony Olubunmi Cardinal Okogie has faulted claims by government officials that Boko Haram has been defeated and said President Muhammadu Buhari and some members of his administration have a task of defending themselves before God.

Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama, of Abuja, Nigeria.

To Tackle Boko Haram Insurgency, “take the war to the criminals”: Nigerian Prelate

Jan 31, 2020

Days after the President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari ordered airstrikes on Boko Haram insurgents and other criminals orchestrating attacks, kidnappings and murders in Africa’s most populous nation, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja has questioned the jihadists’ actions of “killing in the name of God” and called on the Nigerian government to adopt the approach of taking “war to the criminals.”

The four first-year philosophy seminarians who were abducted from the Good Shepherd Major Seminary in Nigeria's Kaduna State on the night of January 8, 2020 / Good Shepherd Major Seminary, Kaduna, Nigeria

“We pray for the speedy release of our Seminarians”: Bishops in Nigeria

Jan 13, 2020

Days after the abduction of four Nigerian Major Seminarians by men “wearing military uniform”, the Catholic Bishops of the West African nation, the most populous in Africa, are counting on the security agencies in their country to make real their assurance of securing the release of the seminarians and called for prayers for the seminarians’ “speedy release”.