Today, as we observe the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, we at The Para-Mallam Peace Foundation (TP-MPF) stand in solidarity with Christians who face intense persecution in Nigeria, particularly in the Northern part of Nigeria.
The Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa’s (ORFA) comprehensive 4-year report reveals deep troubling patterns of targeted violence against Christians in Nigeria. Between October 2019-September 2023, Christians witnessed a disproportionate targeting of their communities, “with Christians being 2.7 times more likely to be killed in religiously-motivated attacks compared to their Muslim neighbours. The study further revealed that in terms of state populations, 6.5 times as many Christians are being murdered as Muslims.” The report documented that 16,769 Christians were murdered in religiously motivated killings from 2020 to 2023 across Nigeria with the Middle Belt worst hit in that 4-year report. TP-MPF works in partnership at the local level with ORFA in documenting the killings and kidnapping taking place all over Nigeria.
These attacks have devastated entire Christian communities, forcing thousands to flee their ancestral homes and become Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), living in very inhumane conditions with little or no support from the Nigerian government.
Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List ranks Nigeria as the 6th most dangerous country globally for Christians, noting that more Christians were killed for their faith in Nigeria than in any other country in 2023. The organization reports that attacks by extremist groups, including Boko Haram, ISWAP, Bandits and Armed Fulani Herdsmen. All three have targeted (but not limited to) Christian communities.
As we pray today, we remember families who have lost loved ones, the communities living in fear, and the faithful who continue to practice their beliefs despite grave risks. We call for increased attention to this crisis and concrete actions to protect religious freedoms (FoRB) in Nigeria.
The Para-Mallam Peace Foundation remains committed to documenting these violations, supporting affected communities, and working towards sustainable peace which is predicated on justice; where all Nigerians; (including those of other faith) can practice their faith without fear of persecution.
We will share two major developing stories regarding the persecuted below:
Praise – God Acted – He answered most remarkably.
Mrs Alice Loksha Ngaddah, a Unicef Nurse and a mother of two, who was kidnapped on March 1st, 2018, two weeks after Leah Sharibu, has by God’s grace regained her freedom on Saturday October 26th 2024. She is still under security documentation and her family in coordination with TP-MPF will issue a formal statement later. Her husband and sister are in touch with her. Alice is one of those persecuted Christians that The Para-Mallam Peace Foundation has been involved in advocating her release on the direct request of her husband. God acted mercifully. May God also answer and bring Leah Sharibu, Lilian Gyang Daniel, Praise Austine, Patience, Joy and several others out of captivity.
Call for Prayer
Ms Annah Bitrus, is a young Church member from Pulka, in Gwoza LGA in Borno State, Nigeria. She was kidnapped on September 28th 2024 by Boko Haram. Her story is a deve
loping story. We were approached by her Pastor to lift her case up in prayer. Let us pray fervently for her release. God is able to bring her out and several others.
This statement is a call for believers in and outside Nigeria, to unite in prayer and action for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger Republic, the Sahel, Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia, Congo DRC, Mozambique, Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, North Korea, China, and other parts of the world.
Persecution will not kill the Church, but a compromised gospel will – Dr. Patrick Fung, in a talk at the Lausanne 4 Congress on World Evangelization. It is also remarkable to mention that at the Lausanne 4 Congress which held in Seoul, South Korea, the plight of the persecuted Church was highlighted for the global audience. The leadership of the Lausanne Movement is to be commended for remembering the persecuted Church in this way.
All for the King and His Kingdom.
Signed:
for the The Para-Mallam Peace Foundation Global Team