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Pope Leo XIV calls for immediate release of over 300 kidnapped students, worshippers in Nigeria
Pope Leo XIV has made a strong appeal for the urgent release of more than 300 people kidnapped in recent attacks on schools and churches in Nigeria, describing the events as deeply heartbreaking, according to Vatican News.
Speaking after the Angelus prayer on Sunday, the Pope said he was saddened by the news of mass abductions involving priests, worshippers and students in Nigeria and Cameroon.
He expressed special concern for the many young children taken and the pain their families are going through.
The Christian Association of Nigeria had earlier confirmed that gunmen carried out coordinated attacks on two schools, seizing hundreds of students and teachers.
The Pope said his “heartfelt appeal” is for the immediate release of all hostages and prayed that churches and schools will continue to be places of safety and hope.
The wave of violence began on Monday when armed men stormed a secondary school in Kebbi State and kidnapped 25 girls.
A second raid took place on Friday at St. Mary’s co-education school in Niger State, where hundreds more were abducted.
The same week, attackers invaded a church in Kwara State, killed two people and took away several worshippers.
These incidents have added to rising international tension. U.S. President Donald Trump recently threatened military action, accusing radical Islamist groups of targeting Christians in Nigeria.
The country is still battling with the memory of the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction by Boko Haram, with many of those victims still unaccounted for more than ten years later.
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