A massacre at a church in southwestern Nigeria on Pentecost Sunday has killed over 50 people, many of them being children, after gunmen opened fire and set off explosives.
According to legislator Ogunmolasuyi Oluwole, the gunmen began their rampage at St. Francis Catholic Church in Ondo state after worshippers began to gather for a service. Additionally, a priest is believed to have been abducted from the church.
So far, the death toll sits at 50 people, although it’s thought that number is likely to rise.
Ondo Governor Rotimi Akeredolu tweeted that the assailants “will be hunted down and they will pay for their crimes.”
I just arrived Owo from Abuja following the unfortunate attack on the people worshipping at the St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo.
I have received briefs from the Heads of Security agencies in the state. The assailants will be hunted down and they will pay for their crimes. pic.twitter.com/qIiydy2nh4
— Arakunrin Akeredolu (@RotimiAkeredolu) June 5, 2022
He also shared in another tweet, “I am deeply saddened by the unprovoked attack and killing of innocent people of Owo, worshiping at the St. Francis Catholic Church, Today.”
“The vile & satanic attack is a calculated assault on the peace-loving people of Owo Kingdom who have enjoyed relative peace over the years.”
I am deeply saddened by the unprovoked attack and killing of innocent people of Owo, worshiping at the St. Francis Catholic Church, Today.
The vile & satanic attack is a calculated assault on the peace-loving people of Owo Kingdom who have enjoyed relative peace over the years. pic.twitter.com/30fMbfnOxc
— Arakunrin Akeredolu (@RotimiAkeredolu) June 5, 2022
News of the violent attack has reached around the world, where in Rome, Pope Francis expressed his condolences to the victims and their families.
A statement was released saying, “The pope has learned of the attack on the church in Ondo, Nigeria and the deaths of dozens of worshippers, many children, during the celebration of Pentecost. While the details are being clarified, Pope Francis prays for the victims and the country, painfully affected at a time of celebration, and entrusts them both to the Lord so that he may send his Spirit to console them.”
CBN News has reported numerous other attacks against Christians throughout the country, which have steadily increased over the past few years.
In fact, just last month the Islamic State (IS) group shared a video allegedly displaying the murder of over 20 Christians in northeast Nigeria’s Borno State.
And in another instance, Fulani herdsmen murdered 50 Christians and abducted a Catholic priest in the Kaduna state.
Additionally, Islamic terrorists are suspected to have taken the lives of over 32 Christians and two soldiers in the town of Kagoro, Kaura just this March.
Sadly, it is known statistically that Nigeria is set at number 7 in the list of countries in the world where it is the most difficult to be identified as a Christian.
