At least two people have been killed and about six others wounded in a night raid on two predominantly Christian villages in Nigeria’s north-eastern Adamawa state.
Gunmen ‘in large numbers’ went from house to house, shooting as they did so, in the attack on Shaforon and Kodumti villages in the Numan local government area about 1am on Sunday.
The online news agency Sahara Reporters says that an 11-year-old boy who had lost his mother in a previous attack saw his father killed in Sunday’s raid. The child was reportedly shot in the leg.
Nigerian media say that one of the gunmen was killed when military personnel came to the defence of the villages and a soldier was wounded in the crossfire.
Witnesses blamed ‘herdsmen’ for the attacks, though police described them as ‘cattle rustlers’. Since 2011, an estimated 11,000 people have been killed in conflict involving Fulani militia.
• Pray that God will comfort and strengthen all those who are grieving or injured as a result of these attacks.
• Please pray for an end to the bloodshed in Nigeria. Pray that government and military officials will make concerted efforts now to curb the violence and to protect vulnerable villages.
• Pray that God will give wisdom to church leaders in Nigeria as they lead their congregations through troubled times.
(Sources: Daily Post, The Nation, Sahara Reporters)
UPDATE
Please pray for our family in Algeria where Protestant churches continue to face pressure from the authorities. Earlier this month, the media reported that the Government had ordered regional officials to step up their investigation into church finances. The order refers to the Protestant Church of Algeria as a radical movement ‘supported by foreign parties’ intent on spreading ‘destructive ideas’. Pray that this order will not succeed in stirring up negative feeling towards the church.
(Source: Middle East Concern)