Intensification of Christian persecution in Nigeria

A Christian priest and his pregnant wife were killed last week on their farm in northeastern Nigeria, the latest victims of a series of kidnappings and killings of Christians in the country.

The Hausa Christian Foundation (HACFO) called the killing as a part of a "systematic and direct war against Christianity in Nigeria" and said "priests and Christian leaders are either kidnapped or killed every week in the country."

Gunmen shot dead Emmanuel Saba Belia and his wife Juliana at their farm in Taraba, northeastern Nigeria, on June 1. Juliana was pregnant. The couple has eight children.

"They were attacked by unidentified gunmen while they were working on the farm," police said in a statement.

The attack is the latest in a wave of violence against Christians in Nigeria, mainly by the Boko Haram terrorist group, the Fulani militant nomadic herdsmen, and the Islamic State terrorist group (ISWAP) in the northeastern West African.

More than 600 Christians have been killed aince 2021, their farms and homes set on fire, and priests abducted, according to a report released May 15 by the International Association for Civil Liberties  (Intersociety). 

 
 _{Source and Credit: CN, HAUSA}