Nigeria Church Attack: Gunmen Open Fire During Morning Mass, Kills 19 Including Two Priests

The killed men included 17 worshippers and two priests. The incident was reported in a remote village in Benue state in Nigeria. The armed men were first thought to be cattle herders.

Nigeria, Apr 25: At least 19 people were killed after some armed men stormed a Catholic church during a morning mass and opened fire at the worshippers in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. The killed men included 17 worshippers and two priests. The incident was reported in a remote village in Benue state in Nigeria. The armed men were first thought to be cattle herders.

The herdsmen also burnt nearly 50 houses during the attack. The attackers also believed to have sacked the entire community. Following the church attack, President Muhammadu Buhari, in a statement, said, “The attack is clearly calculated to stoke up religious conflict and plunge our communities into endless bloodletting.”

In a separate incident, suspected Boko Haram militants killed 21 people in separate attacks in a remote northeastern region of Nigeria, PTI reported. The jihadists shot dead 18 forest workers who had been collecting firewood in Borno state, close to the town of Gamboru, on the border with Cameroon, a member of a local anti-militant militia said.

“The bodies were scattered over several hundred metres, and they were mostly shot in the head or the back,” another militiaman said.

On Sunday, a group of civilians travelling in a vehicle hit a mine planted by the insurgents. The attack killed three and injured at least 11. The Boko Haram insurgency which broke out in 2009, has killed at least 20,000 people and displaced more than 2.6 million, forcing them into camps and host communities.