The Catholic Diocese of Zaria in Nigeria’s Kaduna state said on Wednesday that a priest named Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Ezema was kidnapped from his church Tuesday night.
According to the diocese, Ezema was taken from his residence at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Rumi, a village in Kaduna.
“We call on all men and women of Goodwill to pray for the safe and quick release of our priest and others from the hands of their abductors,” Chancellor of the Nigerian Catholic Diocese Fr. Isek Augustine said Wednesday.
“Through the intercession of our Lady, the Mother of all Priests, and our mother, may our brother, and others return to us safe and sound,” he prayed.
The diocese did not say whether a ransom was demanded or not and Nigerian officials have yet to identify the kidnappers.
Nigeria’s Daily Post reported the abduction has thrown the Catholic community in Kaduna into a state of “panic,” given the atmosphere of fear across the country.
“Fr. Ezema’s abduction adds to the growing list of clergy targeted by armed groups in recent months, raising renewed concerns over the safety of religious institutions in the country,” the Daily Post observed.
Another kidnapped Nigerian priest, an Anglican named Venerable Edwin Achi, was murdered by his captors last week. Achi was also posted to the state of Kaduna, where he was kidnapped along with his wife and daughter by a squad of unidentified gunmen on October 28.
Shortly before announcing Achi’s killing, the kidnappers released photos of the priest, his wife, and several other Christian hostages.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, facing heavy criticism from within and outside of Nigeria for failing to take action against jihadis and bandits, declared a national state of emergency last week.
President Donald Trump slammed Tinubu’s government for allowing a “Christian genocide” and threatened to send in American troops with “guns-a-blazing” in early November.
Read the full article here