Gunmen attacked a church in
northern Nigeria on Christmas Eve, killing six people, including the
pastor, and setting the building on fire, residents and police said.
“A group of gunmen came into the village at midnight and went straight to the church,” said Usman Mansir, a resident of Peri village near Potiskum, the economic capital of Yobe state.
“They opened fire on them, killing the pastor and five worshippers. They then set fire to the church,” he added, specifying that a branch of the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) was targetted.
A senior police official in Yobe confirmed the details to AFP, but declined to be named.
Yobe police chief Sanusi Rufa’i said “this is a security issue” and refused to comment further.
It was not clear who was behind the latest violence.
While Yobe’s population is overwhelmingly Muslim, the commercial hub of Potiskum has a significant Christian minority. Peri is just two kilometers outside the city.
“A group of gunmen came into the village at midnight and went straight to the church,” said Usman Mansir, a resident of Peri village near Potiskum, the economic capital of Yobe state.
“They opened fire on them, killing the pastor and five worshippers. They then set fire to the church,” he added, specifying that a branch of the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) was targetted.
A senior police official in Yobe confirmed the details to AFP, but declined to be named.
Yobe police chief Sanusi Rufa’i said “this is a security issue” and refused to comment further.
It was not clear who was behind the latest violence.
While Yobe’s population is overwhelmingly Muslim, the commercial hub of Potiskum has a significant Christian minority. Peri is just two kilometers outside the city.
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