STORY
Pentecost Sunday Massacre The Pentecost Sunday Massacre in Owo shows how these lines are often blurred. Nigerian authorities blame the Islamic State and other Islamic terrorist groups while the local popu- lation believes Fulani herdsmen played a role in the attack. Also, the attack in Roboh, Kaduna state, was carried out by unidentified perpetrators.
me, some even inside my chasuble. I shielded them just as a hen shields her chicks. I heard the voices of my parishioners: ‘Father, please save us; Father, pray!’ I encouraged them and calmed them, and said they should not worry, that I was praying, and that God would do something. I heard three or four explosions, one after the other.” Parishioner Thaddeus Bade Salau was shot but survived. “I was in church when the incident happened. I was lying down on the ground until one of the gunmen had me stand up along with nine other parishioners, including my beau- tiful daughter. They shot all of us, one after the other. I was the last to be shot, and I was hit in the cheek. I was the only person out of the ten who survived. It was indeed something I can never forget. It was painful that I lost my beautiful dau- ghter during the attack, but my faith is not shaken by that.”
On 5 June 2022, Pentecost Sunday, armed men attacked St. Francis Xavier Church in Owo, Ondo Diocese, killing around 40 people and injuring more than 80. The massacre took place in the southwest of Nigeria, a place that hasn’t been affected until now by the insecurity and vio- lence which generally affect the north and the Middle Belt. Fr Andrew Abayomi was still in the building when the attack took place. In an interview with ACN he recalled the mo- ment: “I heard a noise. I thought it was a door slamming, or that someone had fallen, or seen a snake, because that has happened before. But then I heard a second loud noise, and I saw parishioners running in different directions in the church. I stood there in shock, wondering what was going on, when someone ran to me, yelling: ‘Father, unknown gunmen!’” “I remained in the inner part of the sacristy. I could not run as I was surrounded by children, while some adults clung to
Original articles: https://acninternational.org/massa- cre-in-owo-nigeria/
https://acninternational.org/inter- view-about-massacre-in-nigeria/ https://acninternational.org/nigerian-massa- cre-interview/ https://acninternational.org/testimo- nies-massacre-nigeria/
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