KADUNA, NIGERIA
1 OF 4 KIDNAPPED NIGERIAN SEMINARIANS RELEASED AFTER SUFFERING SERIOUS INJURIES
(CNA) A Nigerian seminarian who was abducted this month was freed by his kidnappers after 10 days in captivity. Three seminarians kidnapped with him remain in captivity.
The freed seminarian, who has not yet been identified, is being treated at a Catholic hospital in Kaduna, Nigeria. The extent of his injuries is unclear, but he is being treated in the hospital’s intensive care unit.
The seminarian might have been freed and dumped along the road “because the abductors felt the boy could not survive in their hands,” a source told ACI Africa. The abducted seminarians were first year philosophy students at Good Shepherd Seminary.
The students, Pius Kanwai, 19; Peter Umenukor, 23; Stephen Amos, 23; and Michael Nnadi, 18, were abducted on the night of Jan. 8 in a 30-minute operation that saw the kidnappers, dressed in military uniform and armed with guns, force their way onto the Catholic seminary campus, which is home to 268 seminarians.
Kidnappings of Christians in Nigeria have multiplied in recent months, a situation that has prompted Church leaders to express serious concern about the security of their members and to call on the government to prioritize the security of its citizens.
TAIWAN
TAIWAN PRESIDENT APPEALS TO POPE FRANCIS
(Catholic Herald) Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen has written to Pope Francis describing China’s aggression and persecution of religion as “obstacles to peace,” and detailing the Communist regime’s “abuses of power.”
“The crux of the issue is that China refuses to relinquish its desire to dominate Taiwan. It continues to undermine Taiwan’s democracy, freedom, and human rights with threats of military force and the implementation of disinformation campaigns, cyberattacks, and diplomatic manoeuvres,” Tsai wrote in a letter to the Pope published by her office on January 21.
Tsai sent the letter in response to Pope Francis’ message for the 2020 World Day of Peace, the Pope’s annual letter sent to all foreign ministers around the world to mark the new year.
This year, the Pope’s letter entitled: “Peace as a Journey of Hope: Dialogue, Reconciliation and Ecological Conversion,” called on “the conscience of humanity” to rise up in the face of “every desire for dominance and destruction.”
The newly re-elected president of Taiwan, formally called the Republic of China, told Pope Francis of her desire to “peacefully resolve the differences across the Taiwan Strait.”
ALEPPO, SYRIA
MIDDLE EAST COUNCIL OF CHURCHES RELEASES STATEMENT ON FATE OF KIDNAPPED BISHOPS
(Independent Catholic News) The Middle East Council of Churches has issued the following statement related to the case and fate of two Metropolitan Archbishops of Aleppo, Boulos Yaziji and Mor Gregorius Youhanna Ibrahim, who were kidnapped on 22 April 2013.
“Over the past couple of months, many worrying reports and claims regarding the case and fate of the two Archbishops Boulos Yaziji and Mor Gregorius Youhanna Ibrahim who were kidnapped on April 22, 2013 in the western countryside of Aleppo – Syria, went viral in media outlets,” reads the statement.
“The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East, and the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East, have been closely monitoring these reports that are totally independent from our relentless efforts and endeavours in the search for our two missing Archbishops and we are determined to leave no stone unturned until we identify their whereabouts and their fate.”
The statement concludes: “While we extend our sincere gratitude to all individuals and entities who are concerned about the fate of our Archbishops and especially those who are undertaking initiatives to help shed the light on their ordeal, we ask all to pray for the two Archbishops and invite all those who can help our official endeavours in bringing this humanitarian case to an end to contact the churches through the official, designated channels.”
Tej Francis
tejfrancis@gmail.com
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