Nigeria: 2 dead in an attack on a church, a few days after the kidnapping of dozens of schoolgirls

Two people were killed in an attack on a church in central Nigeria, authorities said, just days later. dozens of schoolgirls were kidnapped and a staff member killed in the north of the country.

No group has claimed responsibility for Tuesday evening’s attack in the central Nigerian town of Eruku. Police responded to the shooting and found one person shot to death inside the church and another nearby, Kwara state police spokesman Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi said in a statement.

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq in a statement on Wednesday congratulated Nigerian President Bola Tinubu for the deployment of 900 additional troops to the country.

Tinubu delayed his departure for South Africa, where he planned to attend this weekend’s G20 summit of major rich and developing countries after the attack and kidnapping of 24 schoolgirls on Monday, a spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement.

One of 25 students kidnapped in northwest Nigeria escapes

Twenty-five schoolgirls were reportedly kidnapped Monday from the government girls’ secondary school in Maga town, Kebbi state, but one of them escaped and is now safe, the school’s principal told The Associated Press on Tuesday. The hunters were looking for the last missing students in the forests near the school.

No group has claimed responsibility for these kidnappings. Bandit gangs often target schools, travelers and isolated villagers in kidnappings for ransom, analysts and residents say.

Local police said gunmen scaled the school fence and exchanged gunfire with officers before taking the girls and killing a staff member.

Trump asks Pentagon to “prepare for possible action” over persecution of Christians in Nigeria

Meanwhile, President Trump, earlier this month, claimed Christianity faces “existential threat” in Nigeria and asked the Pentagon to begin preparing for possible military action in the West African country.

In an article on Truth Social late last month, Mr. Trump accused the Nigerian government of not doing enough to prevent the killings of Christians, saying the United States “could very well enter this country today in disgrace, ‘with guns blazing’ to completely eliminate the Islamist terrorists who are committing these horrific atrocities.”

The Nigerian government has categorically rejected these allegations. Tinubu said the characterization of Nigeria as a religiously intolerant country does not reflect the national reality. Although Christians are among those targeted, analysts say the majority of victims of armed groups are Muslims in Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north, where most attacks occur.

“Religious freedom and tolerance have been a fundamental principle of our collective identity and will always remain so,” Tinubu said on November 1. “Nigeria opposes and does not encourage religious persecution. Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all faiths.”

Nigeria’s central region has been plagued by violence for years, with local herders and farmers often clashing over limited access to land and water. The clashes also took on a religious dimension, giving rise to militias who rallied around predominantly Muslim breeders or farmers from Christian communities.

Northern Nigeria is often the scene of attacks by the resurgent Boko Haram group, affiliated with the Islamic State group, and armed gangs.