By: V4 Agency
The world needs to wake up to a Jihad that is moving across Africa, the Christian Release International organisation warns, as the number of Christians attacked and murdered have risen sharply in the past few years.
More than 1470 Christians have been massacred in Nigeria in the first four months of this year, according to research by Release International. The documents show that Nigerian Islamic Jihadists have also abducted over 2,200 Christians, and the number of Christian deaths in the country surpasses the total number of Christians killed in 2019.
Andrew Boyd, from Release International, said he is deeply concerned.
“These figures are very alarming. This report estimates that Christians are now being killed in greater numbers than at any time in Nigeria since 2014,” he said.
The world mustn’t ignore what he described as the hallmarks of a continuing Jihad – or religious war – sweeping across Africa, Boyd added. Fulani militants, Boko Haram and others are clearly targeting Christians and Christian identity, he said, adding that this should not be overlooked.
The report suggests that Nigeria is currently the most dangerous place in the world for Christians. It also found that the highest number of deaths was recorded in Kaduna, northern Nigeria, with 300 Christian deaths out of an estimated 430 killings in the past four months.
However, the persecution of Christians is a growing problem not only in Nigeria, but also across the region, Boyd says.
“There’s a growing jihadist movement in the region, in countries like Mali and Burkina Faso. What you’ve got here are Islamist fighters, Mujahideen holy warriors, who have been fighting in Syria armed to the teeth, with weapons left over from the conflict in Libya. These are battle-hardened fighters, extremists, ISIS people and others, such as Boko Haram, who are moving south throughout Africa. There are movements into the West and into the East, and are spreading jihad,” Boyd said, providing some detail as to the background of the jihadist movements.
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