At least 32 Christians were killed by suspected Fulani extremists in Nigeria Tuesday, sources told a leading Christian persecution monitoring group.
The early-morning attack occurred in the district of Maro in the Kaduna state of north-central Nigeria, according to reports. In addition to the loss of life, homes and at least one church were burned as hundreds were displaced. Some homes even reportedly had sleeping residents inside when they were lit on fire.
“Please pray for peace in Kaduna state — hundreds have been displaced and hundreds killed by the Fulani jihadists,” The Rev. Bakari Ibrahim, director of the ECWA’s Evangelical Missionary Society, told Morning Star News. “We evacuated about a hundred EMS kids from Kufana for safety.”
Resident Mordecai Funom Ibrahim told the persecution news outlet that about 400 armed Fulanis attacked villages around Maro around 6 a.m. Tuesday.
At the time of the attack, a group of women affiliated with the ECWA had gathered for a meeting at the local church.
“We ran out of the church building as the shooting was going on,” one of the women from the group told Morning Star News. “Many have been killed, and I have not seen my family members since morning. I have escaped out of the area.”
A Kaduna government official confirmed the attack in a statement.
“Today, the Kaduna State government was briefed by security agencies of renewed attacks in Kajuru Local Government Area, and in parts of neighboring Kachia Local Government Area,” Samuel Aruwan, the senior special assistant to the governor, told The Guardian.
“The state government has been assured that the security agencies are working assiduously to contain the situation. The government is saddened by these attacks, condemns the perpetrators and urges all residents of the area to support the security agencies in their efforts to protect communities.”
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SOURCE: Christian Post, Samuel Smith
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