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News / Thoughts
Updates, ideas, reflections and articles from Open Doors and our friends
Church bombing in Nigeria
The situation in Nigeria is escalating again. Suspected Boko Haram members carried out a suicide bombing at the Redeemed Christians Church of God in Potiskum, Yobe state in the northeast of the country on Sunday. The pastor and four other worshippers were killed, including a mother and her two children.
“Wailing women and stunned men wandered around the wreckage of smashed bricks and twisted zinc sheets blown off the church roof. One congregant said the blast came from a woman in the congregation. She was too scared to give her name,” reported the AP.
Another witness said that the bomber arrived at the church on a motorised rickshaw disguised as a worshipper and detonated the explosives after entering the church. “A loud explosion ripped through the church which is under construction,” he said. “Five worshippers, including three females and two males were in the church when the bomber entered and they were all killed,” he added.
Things are getting worse
Open Doors workers in Nigeria are reporting escalating violence in Yobe state, north Nigeria. “Reports of churches being burned and ‘many Christians’ being killed have reached them,” reports an Open Doors co-ordinator.
Please pray for the protection of Christians and our workers, and that the government will be able to bring this situation under control quickly and restore peace.
A week of violence
Tuesday 30 June: 48 men shot dead after prayers in two villages near the town of Monguno
Wednesday 1 July: more than 50 gunmen kill 97 people – many of whom were attending the Mosque – in the village of Kukawa, near Lake Chad
Thursday 2 July: two female suicide bombers attack a village in Borno state
Friday 3 July: several suicide bombers killed large numbers in Zabarmari village
Source: Open Doors; AP
Please pray…
- For comfort for the families who lost loved ones in the Potiskum bombing
- For grace for the church members as they respond to this terrible attack
- For the authorities to find ways to better protect citizens against escalating Boko Haram violence.
Why is this happening in Nigeria?
Find out more about persecution of Christians and the situation in Nigeria on our Nigeria Country profile page.
We support people who are beaten, tortured,
imprisoned, falsely accused, and hated simply for following Jesus.
