Africa

Reeling from the Nov. 21 kidnapping of more than 250 kids and teachers from a Catholic school in central Nigeria, Bishop Bulus Dauwa Yohanna of Kontagora said trauma, helplessness and …

The rising kidnapping of foreign nationals and local Christians has left a feeling that the Sahel region is “an endangered place for missionaries.”

The students were both male and female and ranged in age from 10 to 18, the Christian Association of Nigeria said in a statement.

“Kivu is … full of precious resources that has always been contested,” said Father Giovanni Piumatti. “That is why these Islamist groups receive backing.”

“Despite the fear, despite the loss, our people still come to church,” the bishop said. “Our faith is alive — maybe more alive than ever.”

Bishop Gabriel Dunia of Auchi “expressed his deep pain and sorrow over the loss of the young seminarian” and urged intensified efforts to protect people.

“Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” President Trump posted on Truth Social.

“It is a forgotten war because the people are really forgotten,” said Italian Bishop Christian Carlassare of Bentiu in neighboring South Sudan.

Disaster struck when, in the hundreds, the worshippers climbed on a makeshift scaffold to catch a glimpse of a mural on the church ceiling.

The school runs the only radio station in the region and seeks to build a concert hall for the children to perform at.